The Alien Criminal and His Hero
by SilverSnowflake9798
Summary: The first thing Bakugou understood about his life was that he was created to destroy. After he narrowly avoids being killed he intends to do just that. It should be easy…except for the human that makes him question his own mission. She could have destroyed him. Why didn't she? (Inspired by Lilo and Stitch)
1. Chapter 1

**Bakugou+Uraraka fic. I'm not sure how much I actually ship these two at this point, but this idea came to me. I still like Kirishima/Bakugou…Uraraka/Tsyuu...seriously bnha is like multishipping hell for me. I basically ship everyong except for the ships that the writer actually wants me to ship! Anyway, there will be tidbits of other ships in here as well, but main is Bakugou/Uraraka.**

 **HEAVILY influenced by/Based on Lilo and Stitch. Different genre, age, character, but still. I don't own BNHA or anything by Disney.**

Meet the Prisoner

When you look up at the sky, you see the stars. They are beautiful, sure. So beautiful that most people stop there and never think about beyond that. The few that have find the planets. They are beautiful, sure. They see the planets and believe they are enough. That there is nothing else beyond these beautiful places. But for those who see beyond that. Who wonder, what if there is more out there? More that may be…alive? Not another plane of existence, but something that was created for us to see, to feel, to touch? Well, those people would be right. Because there is more out there. Even more beautiful, wondrous things that humanity has not even come close to imagining yet. And one of those wondrous creations that mankind has yet to discover…

Is a literal bomb made of destruction and rage.

"Members of the jury of the intergalactic alliance of peace." On what humans would call a spaceship, in the centre of a large gathering of creatures and beings of all different shapes and sizes stood a judge in white. Well, white, black and red. She looked, from a human's terms, normal. Long dark hair, a white robe with black and red belts, two legs and two arms with a regular, albeit beautiful, face. However, if you were to look closely, you'd see that there are a few things that made her different. Perhaps the shining red eyes? Or the scales such a light colour they looked like skin? Or the way her tongue forked when she got excited. Well, maybe it was that. Maybe it was more. But Miss Midnight is not the main character of our story. "We are gathered here, with me as your judge, in order to cast judgement on an immoral creation known as…" While the beings around her sat in what humans would call benches that circled her, the creature humans would assume is a women flipped through her papers.

"…Lord explosion Murder." A few members of the court looked confused, so Midnight gave more detail. "Otherwise known as experiment 4.20.172."

That explanation caused quite number of murmurs through the crowd. Some negative, some confused, some unable to identify. Midnight seemed to understand there was no one emotion, so she went on. "Standing in his defense," she continued as a large circle in front of her started to glow with an unnatural white light. "Law enforcer, highly credited defender of the peace, Eraserhead. Otherwise known as Aizawa Shouta." As soon as she was done, the white light flashed so bright those with weak eyes had to shield them. When the light dissipated, another creature stood there. This one also looked fairly human, but do not be fooled. His eyes were also a piercing red. His hair, an unnatural shade of black, seemed to float in the air. Pale, almost grey skin was so smooth you could slide on it. Oh, and then there was the pair of small horns hidden underneath his hair. But that was all anyone could see…on the surface at least.

Aizawa glared when Midnight sent him a friendly wink. In the crowd only a few recognized him. The name was familiar of course, but the seemingly lazy man in an all-black ensemble did not fit the bill. A hero known for his wisdom and quick-decision-making skills in battle? Being the defense of some creature? It did not fit the image many had created in their minds.

"And in the offense," Midnight began again, a second light forming next to Aizawa. "We have military general Enji Todoroki, otherwise known as Endeavor." That name was recognized easily. When the light faded a second time, there was even some applause as the large man-like creature stood in its place. Also very human, except for the flames that replaced his hair, the claws instead of fingers and the red scaly tail that wrapped around his waist like a belt. He did not seem to register the crowd around him, eyes focused on a spot in-between him, Aizawa and the judge. His mission. He showed determination at finishing it.

Aizawa saw this look. But unlike many other who had stood against the general, Aizawa felt no fear. It wasn't that he was sure of his case. It was that he knew, no matter what, he had to win.

"And," Midnight hesitated with her third introduction. "We have the…accused. This is Lord Explosion Murder." While cringing at the name, all of the crowd leaned closer as the familiar light appeared. However, when it faded, many were shocked and horrified with the revelation.

In the glass cage that appeared in the centre of the hall held a creature with the appearance no one had ever seen before. Like a human, it had two legs, two arms, a head, torso and regular body. But the arms were green with large metal grenades just before his hands, which were large, orange and black. A clear mist seemed to follow him, as if the sweat on his body was constantly heating to the point where it evaporated. He was large, almost as tall as Endeavor the hero. Even though most prisoners were brought in with the standard prison gear, he only wore the sanctioned white and black stripped shirt. His pants were black with metal at the knees and he wore large boots with spikes at the front, sharp enough to stab someone with. His hair was a simple blond, but upon closer inspection one would discover that the ends of his hair were tiny flames. Along his arms the judges could see long lines and incisions that showed old scars evidence of battle. On his back was a procession of spikes that steadily god larger until the last one was a long thin green tail with the end pointed like a spear. His mouth, full of strong pointed teeth, was so wide it was as if he has cut the ends to fit more into his mouth. Two black layers of skin stuck out behind his ears with sharp jagged edges that looked like little explosions on either side of his head.

Then his eyes- a similar red to others in the galaxy. But they were surrounded by a thick layer of black, the colour of ash, that gave anyone who looked upon him no choice but to focus on his eyes. They were large, wild, completely untamed like an animal. Just one look at the creature and everyone in the audience was struck with a sense of fear.

That animalistic nature was only supported when the first thing the creature did when surrounded by silence was let out a loud, guttural roar that echoed through the hall. Aliens all jumped back in surprise, while the guards that stood at attention all went for their weapons. Many were thankful for the multiple chains that engulfed the creature. Endeavor scoffed in disdain as the creature tried to yanks his arms and legs free. Aizawa cringed when people started whispering in fear.

Midnight had seen the creature before, but still the jewels on her belt glowed to come to her defense. With a short hesitation she turned to Aizawa. "I…Eraserhead, would you like to give the court a summary of the case?"

"Of course," Aizawa replied, ignoring the creature's yells. Normally it would be the judge to explain, but Aizawa had asked to present the case himself. He was grateful she had listened…but the reactions from the crowd reminded him why he needed the advantage. With a respectful bow to the court, he began his speech. "Exactly one month ago now, my team and I caught word of a scientist who had been experimenting in order to create a being that had the potential to take over worlds. Within the week we searched his lab and found this man,"

"Man?" Endeavor scoffed. "Is it a man? That creature looks more like a parasite to me." Normally such an interruption would have been seen as completely disrespectful and would have lost him points with the court. However, given the subject, most were inclined to agree and did not argue with the tactics.

Aizawa on the other hand could not afford to be disrespectfully. He needed all the points in his court as he could get. "It is a man. Or it was." He glanced at the creature as he thrashed around in his cage. There was sympathy and reassurance in his eyes that the creature missed. "From the scientist overhaul's files, we were able to find out that he kidnapped this boy from planet Katsuki at a young age and experimented on him in order to create him into a weapon to take over the three worlds in his solar system and rid it of all disease." He noticed a few in the crowd had sympathy in their eyes. Aizawa counted that as a success. "When we found him we took him back to a health operations building close to our headquarters in order to see if he could be rehabilitated and assess the damage. This is an ongoing process that,"

"Ongoing process?" Again Endeavor interrupted. "Eraserhead, I believe that the research done with this creature in the last months has proven that he is a danger, not a victim that can be treated. Look at him!" he waved an arm out to the cage. Instantly as soon as he got near the subject snarled, his eyes growing in venom and what could only be known as unadulterated hate. As Endeavor began to turn, the creature launched himself at the side, breaking a few chains as he did. There were gasps and shrieks in the crowd, but when he crashed into the wall there was not even a crack in the glass. Endeavor snarled back at the beady eyes that glared through the glass. "As you can see he is extremely dangerous." Talking to the crowd once again he stepped away from the cage, ignoring Aizawa as he rushed over to the side closest to him to try and get his attention. "The files by overhaul detailed exactly how he has been created in order to cause destruction and wreak havoc among civilizations. He has be trained, built and raised in order to do nothing but threat good citizens of the nation. Overhaul may have only planned for the worlds in his solar system, but the capabilities this creature has could hurt hundreds if not thousands of worlds."

A number of murmurs said that it wouldn't take much convincing on Endeavors side to convince them. After Aizawa managed to calm the creature down, he went to the front again. After a quick glare at the general he addressed the crowd again. "We don't know that for sure. He was created for destruction, but it is possible if we teach him he could be good. He was raised to think about one thing and one thing alone."

Again Endeavor scoffed. "From the reports I read, it seems that it is quite clear which path the monster would take if given the option." There was a death glare when he said monster, but Endeavor continued. "Tell me Aizawa. What happened to this creature's creator?"

There was a silence, both from the crowd and from Aizawa as he tried to find the words to answer. Even in the cage, the creature had seemed to pause it's thrashing to hear the answer. After a long pause, Aizawa forced himself to give the court an answer. "From the evidence we found it appears that he…turned on him." Aizawa offered no further explanation. The crowd didn't need any.

Endeavor didn't bother hiding the small smirk on his face. Turning to Midnight he said, "I rest my case. Is there really anything that needs to be proved here?"

As the crowd started murmuring and whispering, Aizawa insisted on getting a word in. "I know that he has the potential to be a threat. Yes he has shown himself to be dangerous. But can we not consider the defeat of Overhaul a victim freeing themselves from a captor? He was taken from his parents and made into a weapon, yes. But he can be more. You're only seeing the surface. He was a boy once. He may have been created to look different, but he still has the same potential anyone else has. No one taught him how to be good or showed him any kindness or mercy. If he were to learn a different way of life, he could be different."

"You say that, yet he's also been with you for a month." Endeavor pointed out.

"How much kindness can he really feel in a prison?" Aizawa countered.

Midnight watched the two go back and forth at each other as she silently pondered the case to herself. Unfortunately, despite the passion and true confidence Aizawa had in his words, it seemed the crowd had made their judgement before he'd even had the chance to talk. In the last few days she had seen how much Aizawa believed in this. The normally deadpanned, careless man showed the same passion behind his stone-cold face that he often held when talking about one of his students. The softy at heart was not naïve. He seemed to be sure he could do it. The problem was, even midnight wasn't sure she believed him.

After some thought, Midnight descended from her pedestal. Slowly, both men stopped their conversation to watch her actions curiously. She did not notice them, eyes fixed on the creature in the cage. It had not been paying attention to her at first, too busy glaring at Endeavor like he was preparing to skin him alive. But when she got closer, those dark beady eyes focused on her.

She stopped right up to the glass barrier. The two creatures stared at each other, studying the other as if hoping to get answers from just a single glance. Offhandedly, Midnight asked Aizawa. "Can it…"

"He." Aizawa corrected.

"..Can he speak?" As if for an answer, the creature started to snarl and growl like an animal. Aizawa groaned inwardly, but tried not to show it.

"I am…working on that." Endeavor rolled his eyes, but decided to say nothing.

Instead he frowned when Midnight reached forward to touch the glass. "Miss Midnight," He protested, making her pause. "The monster is extremely volatile. It wouldn't,"

"He has a name," Aizawa interrupted. Even the creature turned at the sound of Aizawa's voice, startled by the interruption.

Midnight quickly recovered her composure. "Yes, your…weapons name. Besides the title he has already been given?" Aizawa nodded. "And that would be…" She tried turning to the captive for answers. The creature however just snarled at her, sending out a current of derogatory language and slurs. Many in the court shuddered in fear, while others started to edge as far away from the front as they could.

Aizawa seemed to glance at the creature as if to ask permission before answering the question. "His name is Bakugou Katsuki. Bakugou was the planet we found him, and Katsuki is where he was from." Midnight watched the creature-Bakugou, as Aizawa explained. When he did, Bakugou seemed to puff out his chest as if with pride. Midnight raised an eyebrow at that. So the creature had some emotions then. The range of those emotions was the important part. "From what we can tell, he is fully able to understand the speech of others. But whether he is capable of speaking…we have heard nothing except for the curses that he gives. As far as we know, those could be him just repeating what he has heard."

"So he is an animal then," Endeavor concluded.

Aizawa was too tired to deal with him at the moment. Instead of a respectful answer he responded with a zoned in glare. "An animal that repeats what he has learned is the same as an animal who would do tricks in order to be seen as the strongest general? If that's true, I wonder what this court has come to when bringing animals in as their representatives." Endeavor seemed to glow with rage while a few people in the court had to cover their mouths to hide a snicker. Just then Bakugou let out a laugh so loud, everyone spun around to face him. His jeering face directed at Endeavor would have sent even the strongest galactic warrior running to their mama's.

Midnight turned her attention back on Bakugou. "It appears that he can laugh without any problems." Aizawa said nothing, unsure if this was a positive or negative for his argument. Midnight did not wait for an answer. Ignoring Endeavor's warnings, she walked closer to the cage. Bakugou watched curiously, eyes and ears open wide. "…Bakugou Katsuki. If you cannot speak, that is alright. But this courts is currently in the process of deciding the difference between life and death. If your life will mean the death of others, then we cannot allow that. But if your life will mean life for all, then we can give you that chance. Can you give us anything-anything- to make us believe that you are worthy of that chance? That you will use it well?" Midnight had no idea what to think of this creature. She argued both in the sake of fairness and for her friend Aizawa. But in truth…she knew her duty as the judge.

Bakugou, for a moment, did nothing. All the crowd waited to see how he would respond to Midnight's offer. Then, some gasped when he raised one arm. He waved her forward, telling her to come closer. Curious, she did, stepping so close so that she was nearly touching the glass. Endeavor watched while preparing to jump in. Aizawa held his breath, hoping for the best. Bakugou had no trouble dragging his chains forward so that he was right up to the glass. For a moment it was like the entire world stopped as the waited for the inevitable change that would decide the creature's fate.

A wide, devious grin grew on Bakugou's face.

Quicker than anyone could see, Bakugou crashed into the glass. Midnight was so startled she fell backwards and many people in the crowd let out yelps and squeals of fear. Endeavor immediately went to Midnight's side as Bakugou continued ramming into the glass. A few people felt real fear for the first time when the glass, a substance created to be indestructible no matter the villain, began to break. Guards rushed here and there to surround Bakugou, though he paid them no mind. He roared and thrashed in his cage like a wild dog surrounded by nothing but meat. He was crazed, psychotic, and in the eyes of all those around him-dangerous. Aizawa knew, as he let out a deep sigh of defeat, that he had lost.

"Midnight," he tried, giving it one last shot. I know he's difficult now, but,"

"There is no need, Eraserhead," Midnight interrupted, quickly collecting herself. The guards quickly worked to repair the cage as the metal chains around Bakugou sent a small shock through him to calm him down. Midnight took the chance to return to her pedestal, careful to avoid Aizawa's eyes. "This court is here to decide Lord Explosion Murder's fate. We have given him the chance to prove himself. He has chosen to respond with violence. I believe the answer is clear."

Endeavor seemed to nod, confident that the answer he had given was true all along. Again, Aizawa desperately tried to intervene. "Midnight, he may physically be the age of 25 years, but he has still a lot to learn,"

"Aizawa. I understand what you think. But the fact is, we have no proof. Maybe, he could be good. But as far as we know, his capabilities to sympathize and understand kindness may have been taken from him. The possibility for him to show compassion is unfounded, but the potential for danger is real. I'm sorry, but we can't think of the idealistic standpoint here. Lives could be at risk. And he has shown to be powerful. I am sorry Aizawa. But I think the final decision is one that would not take long to debate." She turned on Bakugou, and all the courts around her. "Are there any objections?" Not one alien, creature or monster alike raised their hand. "Very well." Turning back to Bakugou, she was surprised to find the creature's eyes locked onto hers. She had to repress the small gulp in her throat.

"Lord Explosion Murder. Experiment 4.20.172. Katsuki Bakugou." At the sound of his given name, his eyes finally lit with recognition. Midnight tried not to dwell on that as she gave the answer that she hoped would be beneficial for all the lives under her protection. "You have shown to be a threat to the good people of this and many galaxies. Because of this we cannot let you live and potential hurt those around you. By the authority vested in me by the galactic council, you are hereby sentenced to-"

The final sentence was never given.

In plain sight of the shocked, terrified eyes of the court, the chains around Bakugou's wrists, arms, legs, feet, torso and neck suddenly exploded. All stared in shock as Bakugou threw off his main container, then without hesitation, aimed his hands at the glass. Those who had been confused before were quickly enlightened when sparks flew from his hands. Instantly, the glass that was built to be impenetrable, was destroyed.

It was chaos. Screams of fear and terror echoed through the hall. Bakugou seemed to relish in the chaos and jumped into his newfound freedom with a kick in his step and a grin on his face. The guards who tried to stop him were easily thrown aside by another explosion. Court members screamed and scurried away as fast as their legs, tails, wings or tentacles could carry them. Bakugou let out a cruel laugh at their fear, sending explosions to all the exits and right at their tails. "He has the ability to create explosions?" Midnight gasped, horrified as Bakugou began destroying all the defences they had built over the years. The creature that was going to be executed- killed for threatening the lives of innocent, good people…

Was now loose. And ready to destroy those people without a care in the world.

Endeavor quickly jumped into action. While the crowd ran, Endeavor tried rushing at Bakugou. Unfortunately, Bakugou was jubilant, but not unaware. As soon as he charged at him Bakugou launched himself out of the way. Before he could recover Bakugou grabbed the machines- the same ones that had fixed the cage before- and used them to rebuild it. Except that time, around Endeavor.

The general was caught. Outraged, he tried to bang against the crash, to break it the same way Katsuki had. Bakugou just laughed at his feeble attempts, watching as the general's face was engulfed in the fury Bakugou once had. All that was there now was the cruel joy Bakugou felt when he saw those around him begin to run in fear. "Capture him!" he swirled around, and his eyes locked onto a new set of guards rushing into the room. Snarling, he spun around and rushed in the other direction, refusing to release his newfound freedom. As he did, he was confronted with Aizawa.

Eraserhead had bent down into a fighting stance, hands on his steel weapon that hung around his neck and ready to fight. He had faced Bakugou's wrath before. He knew just how dangerous the man could be on the run. He had been the one to find him in that room- the room covered in dents and scratches and burns from previous explosions- that day a month ago. He'd know it- always known it. But hoped for more. Bakugou snarled at Aizawa. Eraserhead fully expected to lose their fight, or for Bakugou to at least cause him to black out before rushing to find an escape.

But there was a light. A new light that Aizawa saw in Bakugou's eyes. Instead of charging at him like he expected, the sparks around Bakugou's arms stopped. He hesitated. His eyes were wide, showing a fearful surprise and confusion at his own actions. Eraserhead's own eyes widened as he saw this in Bakugou. After a month, he finally had a sign- the first sign- that Bakugou had truly understood.

But that sign came too late.

A laser scraped the edge of Bakugou's knee. "There he is!" One soldier called, interrupting the moment. "Get him!" That hesitation disappeared, and Bakugou let out a roar while turning and aiming another explosion at the soldiers. Eraserhead snapped back into the moment, and threw his metal scarf around Bakugou. With a snarl Bakugou dodged the attack, then sprinted straight to the exit. Aizawa considered, momentarily, going after him. But as he disappeared behind the doors, causing an echo of screams to follow him, Aizawa did nothing. Because he knew.

The others may have ran in chaos. The guards around him may have gone for their weapons and the court may have been whispering among themselves, already prepared to give a verdict and hunt him down. But as he ran, Eraserhead smiled to himself.

"I was right."

Now if only someone could help prove that.

* * *

"Fire down Meadowbrook's lane. Repeat, fire down at Meadowbrook's lane. Repeat, fire…"

Down in a town on a little, nearly unknown planet called earth, creatures called humans all rushed this way and that to respond to the call. Slowly the sound of the alarm began to fade into white noise. Firefighters were sprinting down hallways, gathering their gear in preparation of the journey. Another fire down in Meadowbrook was not uncommon. But in their city, fires were much rarer than people seemed to think. And with the sudden drought, fire-fighters had to get to the scene immediately.

"Uraraka!" One human quickly looked up at the sound of her name. The woman, 24, who had only gotten out of training to become a fire fighter a few months ago, ran towards a large machine called a fire truck as quickly as her short legs could carry her. Uraraka had medium length, bouncy brown hair that complemented the innocent looking round face that did not match with the serious job of a fire fighter. She was shorter than most girls her age, and slightly curvier as well. Luckily years of training had not gotten rid of the extra weight, but had made some of them into muscles. Uraraka had no trouble lifting the hoses around her to pack up for battle. With a wide smile that didn't match the situation, she jumped onto the back of the truck, next to her friend who had called to her.

"Hope it wasn't some stupid kid," Jiro scoffed, talking about the fire. "Seriously, idiots like that really need to be locked up."

"Aw, come on Jiro!" Uraraka cooed, hoisting herself up onto the truck with a wide grin. "Don't you think everyone deserves a second chance?


	2. Goals to Achieve

Goals to Achieve

 **Note: in case I didn't mention before, there are a bunch if different ships. Some that I've never shipped before and thought would be good for this story, some that I do because I multiship people and some that are guilty pleasures. A few characters just won't date anyone. Anyway, enjoy the random, potentially cool ships. I haven't decided on all of them yet, so surprises for all!**

 **Note- I'm still debating who to put Todoroki with. I'm a pretty hard core Todomomo shipper, though I really like Tododeku too and the story might make more sense with him. Thoughts?**

With a long sigh Uraraka threw herself onto her bed with a huff. Jiro, her friend who had come along with her, sat on the bed next to her. She leaned back on her arms while Uraraka buried her face into the pink pillow. "That," Jiro began once she'd regained the strength to speak, "Was a long day." She could see Ochaco nod into the pillow.

Eventually Jiro was able to get to her feet. While Uraraka was shorter with a curvier, muscular body, Jiro had grown up quite skinny with an average height. She was strong of course- you had to be if you were a fire fighter- but it didn't show. She pulled her short black hair out of the small ponytail she had put it in whenever she was working. "Do you mind if I call Momo? She gets off work in a bit, and might be willing to bring us some food."

There were absolutely no complaints when Ochaco practically pounced on the idea. All the energy that was gone a second ago returned with a vengeance. "Yes! Ask her to bring cheesecake to! And some burgers, maybe a few potatoes…" Jiro laughed as Uraraka went on with her wish list.

"Alright, alright. I'm not sure if she's actually in town you know!" Uraraka just giggled happily before rushing downstairs to set the table.

Fortunately for the two exhausted women, Yaoyorozu had just gotten back from a trip to Italy. She was thrilled to come visit them and brought more food than the three of them could eat. Uraraka had absolutely no complaints about that and started eating right away. Even though Ochaco rarely did the cooking, often her friends would come visit at her place. The house that Ochaco owned in the country, a small distance from all the business and business of the city, gave them a bit of peace and quiet from their own lives. It was a large house, used to be a farm-house Ochaco would always say. The design was somewhat old fashioned, and the repairs to damages were usually done with cheap materials. Many people who came by the house wondered how Ochaco was able to pay for such a large house that, if proper repairs had been put in, would be absolutely gorgeous. And the answer was always the same.

She couldn't.

"Of course he was found guilty," Yaoyorozu explained her most recent case while the other two women gobbled up their food. "All the evidence I had pointed to the truth that he had the gun."

"Still, taking down the head of a mafia division is no small feat Momo," Jiro reminded her. "Everyone may have known he was guilty, but not everyone could prove that." Momo blushed while staring at her food. It amazed Uraraka that such an intelligent women, one of the most powerful lawyers in the world, still had such little confidence in her own abilities.

After chomping down on some mashed potatoes, Ochaco spoke up with her mouth still full. "I'm glad you made it out okay! How long are you back in town for?" Their little town was just on the edge of a much larger city, making it perfect for people who wanted distance but could still get to work. Yaoyorozu nodded as she gracefully took a bite of her chicken. "That's awesome! We should all do something! We can ask Midoriya and his partner and,"

Before Ochaco could finish, there was a harsh knock on the door. Jiro and Yaoyorozu both looked at each other in confusion while Ochaco automatically stood. "I'll ah…I'll get that." Just as confused as her friends, Uraraka rushed to the front doors. Was she expecting someone else that she forgot about? Had Izuku forgotten something at her place the last time he'd visited?

When she threw the door open however, her spirits were dashed. "Monomo." Her voice caught in her throat as her landlord stood in front of her, his regular cocky smirk on his face. "It's ah… Nice to see you."

"Of course it is." Without waiting to be invited, he pushed his way into the door. Now, an audience to this scene may wonder why Ochaco would have a landlord for her home. That is a long and interesting story.

See, the house did not belong to her at first. Before her, it belonged to her parents. Ochaco grew and was raised in the nice farmhouse. When her parents passed, Ochaco had promised to keep the house that they'd raised her in. The house may have belonged to Ochaco by right, because it was given to her in her parents will. However, since they didn't have the money to pay the government, it was placed in the city's care until Ochaco could take it. And because of that, Ochaco had to pay them back a certain amount every month as if she was renting the place. Then once the amount she paid equaled the amount for the house, it was hers. She only had a year or so to go. Something she looked forward to every month, and each payment she made was a small weight off her shoulders. However, if she were being honest, part of the relief wasn't just finally having the house to herself. It was not having to deal with the landlord who loved to come in for…visits.

Monomo, the one who officially owned the house until she could pay it off, turned to her with a grin. "I just wanted to remind you that the payment for this month will be due in a week. It was late last month, so I wanted to ensure you did not forget." Ochaco nodded, but internally she was holding back the urge to punch him in the face. He knew full well that Ochaco made sure to pay her debts as fast as she could. But just meeting the monthly quota was a struggle with her paycheck.

"I won't forget," Uraraka assured him.

He didn't seem to notice the determination in her wide brown eyes. "You'd better not. If you miss the deadline for another payment, we have all legal permission to take the house back.

It was like Monomo had reached into her chest, taken out her heart and smashed it with a hammer. Her eyes widened and she clenched her chest as if she was physically in pain. "W-what? No you can't!" Monomo said nothing, ignoring Uraraka's internal crisis. It had always been a possibility in the back of her mind, but she'd never wanted to acknowledge it. She'd hoped that it wasn't possible. That they wouldn't do that. But she should have known that money made the world go round. "I've already paid off the house for the last four years! That's more than half! That's not fair!"

"That's not legal," Yaoyorozu interrupted, her and Jiro rushing to her aid. Monomo seemed startled by the interruption and backed up when Yaoyorozu cornered him. "Legally she has agreed to pay the proper amount every month in order to buy off the house. If she has already paid for the amount in more than half the price, there is no legal way you can take the house."

"But you see I can!" Monomo exclaimed, holding up a copy of the contract. Yaoyorozu took it and started reading it over quickly while he explained to Uraraka in person. "When you signed the contract to pay for the house by a certain amount every month. If you do not meet these deadlines, the property is ours. Of course all your money you paid off will be returned, but the house will not be returned." All the money returned? Ochaco doubted that Monomo wouldn't find a way around that as well. Jiro had placed both hands on Uraraka's shoulders when she noticed the girl starting to go pale. Over Uraraka's head she looked to Yaoyorozu for support.

Unfortunately, after reading the contract, Yaoyorozu shook her head. "I'm sorry. It's legal." With a quick glare at Monomo's back she added, "Extremely slimy and backhanded, but legal."

Monomo just shrugged carelessly. "All you need to know is that we want the house paid off as soon as possible, or you forfeit the house."

"What for?" Momo asked. "What reason could you have for doing this? She is paying for the house, the proper amount is yours."

"It's real simply, isn't it," Jiro scoffed. "Because the price that her parents had on the house is nothing compared to what a great big house that is in such a good location is not nearly as much as you could get. Ochaco gets some off because it was part of her parent's will, but if you were able to take the house away, you could sell it for an even greater price and get more money." The realization made Momo gasp, but Ochaco showed no surprise. She'd always known that despite barely being able to make the payments, her parents property was very valuable. Many had come to her offering to buy it off her at double the price she was paying for it. But she would never give it up.

That dedication that Ochaco felt towards the house was lost on Monomo. At the moment however he recognized he was cornered. Eyes flashing to the three girls, his smirk started to fade. "Well," he huffed, straightening his tie. "That is all that I needed to tell you. Good day then." Without another word he spun around, his sharp suit jacket swinging in the air as he did. Jiro's glare practically sent him running out of the door. Jiro took great pleasure in slamming it shut behind him.

As soon as he was gone, the two friends focused on the very worried looking Ochaco. She was running her hands over each other, staring at the closed door in fear. The house she lived in was the one she promised to keep in memory of her parents. She couldn't let go of such an important memory of them. They had been her whole world at one point, and now that they were gone, Uraraka could not let them down and lose their house that they have left her! She just couldn't! She-

"He's just bullying you Ochaco." Jiro interrupted her thoughts, placing both hands on her shoulders and forcing her to look her in the eye. "Don't even worry about it! Those suit-and-coat guys worry about nothing but money!"

"Ochaco, if you ever need help paying off for a month, I can lend you the money and you can pay it back later if you want." Momo put on a smile, trying to be reassuring. Truthfully Uraraka was very grateful for the offer and smiled at her to show that. But in the back of her mind, she knew she couldn't. It was her parent's house. Her responsibility.

"No. No, I can do it." She took a deep breath. "I'll keep my parents' house myself. I can. Don't even worry about it!" She forced herself to put on a grin that was a bit too wide. The other two girls looked at each other, obviously skeptical. "He just threw me off guard is all! Jiro's right, he was just trying to bully me. I've been making my payments fine."

Neither girl was sure if they believed her. But they decided it wasn't their place to push either.

After their meal Jiro and Momo decided to head home together. After getting a glance at Ochaco's fridge Momo insisted on letting her keep the leftovers. Ochaco had readily agreed and waved happily as her two friends walked down the path to Momo's car. Only once the two girls were gone did Ochaco rested her head against the doorframe in defeat. She had been honest when she said she had been paying back the payments in time. But even with those payments, she had to dig into her savings a few times to get the proper amount she owed. It was difficult, and the visit from Monomo just added onto that constant stress.

"Only a few more months," She whispered to herself, as a self-assurance. "Only a little bit longer, then the house is mine. You've already paid more than half. You're almost done…" As her heart started to clench in fear, she decided to go to another for help. "Dear God…please watch over me. Help me keep my parents' house. Maybe…send me an angel. The nicest angel you have."

* * *

Elsewhere in space, Bakugou let out a cackle of maniacal laughter.

It had only taken him three hours. THREE hours. Those fools were really in charge of the safety of the world? What a joke. If he hadn't gotten lost while looking for a rocket, he would have been out in two alone.

As soon as Bakugou had escaped the cage he'd been forced into he raced around to find an escape. He knew they were planning to execute him before the even gave the order. Of course they were. He would have done the same thing. While he was sure he could have easily taken out every one of those weaklings in that whole ship, he did not want to risk them calling more enforcements. Sure, he doubted any of those fools would be strong enough even with that, but he didn't want to risk any injuries. It hadn't taken him long to find an escape pod. At the moment he was navigating his way around asteroids, trying to lose the fleet of soldiers that he knew would be hot on his tail at any moment. While he had been trained for combat, his skills in the air needed some work. But it didn't matter. They wouldn't catch him.

No, Bakugou had to get out. He had to live. Once that was done, then he would be free. Free to do exactly what he was raised to do.

Destroy the rotten world.

His creator had been thinking small. That idiot only wanted a few puny worlds. That fool. Didn't he realize that Bakugou was meat for so much more? He could have the galaxy. The entire universe! His power was more than any other creature that had ever lived! As soon as Bakugou had realized just how small his master's plan really was, he'd laughed in his face. It hadn't taken long for Bakugou to make sure Overhaul would never get the chance to argue back. He hadn't shed a tear for his teacher. There had never been any love shared in between the two of them. It was simply a matter of usefulness. Unfortunately for Overhaul, he thought he was the one using Bakugou. He'd quickly learned the error of that belief.

If nothing else, Bakugou could respect the man's ideals. Eradicating the worlds? There was certainly no use for them. Everyone was rotten. Rotten. His parents may have been…different, but they were gone. His own teacher had created him to use him. He had brought Bakugou to countless worlds and showed him the true nature of a soul. Bakugou was the only one that mattered, none of those extras. It was clear everyone was rotten to the core. Bakugou knew there was nothing else but that darkness. But he was stronger. Not like those spineless cowards who sent others to do work for them. No, Bakugou would never work for anyone. He'd destroy every planet he could find until he ruled the entire galaxy. The name Lord Explosion Murder would be spread all across the universe, no one would ever live without hearing the name-

Lord Explosion Murder?

Was that right?

He hesitated his directory, allowing the small escape pod that barely fit him to take auto pilot as he tried to recollect his thoughts. That was his name. Of course that was his name. What else would…Oh. Bakugou. He'd been calling himself that for a while now, hadn't he? Unconsciously it had begun to stick. Bakugou…Katsuki. That was what that alien had called him. The one that he couldn't forget…

Aizawa…something had been different about him. He wasn't sure what. He couldn't figure out why he wasn't as angry when he spoke to him. He was weird, right? His voice had been different than his teachers. He hadn't run away and cowered behind others like many of the enemies Bakugou had taken down in the past. And his eyes…There was something different in his eyes. The way he had looked at Bakugou. It bothered him. He didn't like it. It was strange, stupid, and he couldn't name it. Everyone he had met, Bakugou had been prepared to kill and be killed in turn. But for some reason, with that man…

Aizawa…

Whatever. It didn't matter. He was probably just-just weird. Whatever made him different must have been some kind of disease. Bakugou wanted no part of that. He was onto bigger and better things. He had to…

Unconsciously, Bakugou started rubbing the grenade built into his arm. A month ago, Aizawa had found him. After he and his soldiers had managed to get in a few, lucky shots, Bakugou had been captured. He remembered snarling at Aizawa as he stepped closer to him. He had hardened his skin, preparing for the punch that would inevitably pierce him. But Aizawa had put a soft hand on his arm. Bakugou's eyes had widened when Aizawa watched the weapon, completely ignoring the danger that was right in front of him. Like he didn't care. Like he knew he wouldn't be killed. Was he an idiot, Bakugou remembered wondering. But Aizawa had looked up, and the softness in his eyes had startled Bakugou so much he hadn't moved. _This looks like you've had it for a while now,_ He'd said, his voice softer than his teachers had ever been. _…that must have hurt._

 _I'm sorry. But you'll be okay,_ He'd said. _Trust me…_

A hard jolt to the side of Bakugou's head snapped him out of the memory. With a hiss, Bakugou turned his pod just enough so he could see a large fleet of five fighter flyers racing towards him. He cursed his own mind for getting distracted. Freaking idiotic memories! Why was he even thinking about that? He had worlds to conquer! With a newfound confidence Bakugou grabbed the controls and charged the engines. With a flash he was racing through the asteroids, avoiding lasers sent after him in a desperate attempt to damage him. The morons! They couldn't aim! After a thought, Bakugou turned his pod momentarily. He could practically see the shock on their faces when he used his laser to aim a perfectly charged attack at the middle racer. It hit directly in the engine, exactly like Bakugou had planned. His laugh echoed as the ship exploded while he turned to make his getaway. That would teach them. Don't go up against the best unless you have the best.

Unfortunately, even the best make mistakes.

As soon as he turned back to escape, there was a crash. Startled, Bakugou could only barely register the screen that reported engine failure. Had one of the lasers actually hit? No…Looking at the damage, he realized he had been hit by one of the stupid asteroids. With horror, he realized what little control he had over the pod was starting to fail. Desperately he tried regaining control, swirling the wheel around this way and that to get out of the line of fire. But the engine didn't just lose power. It exploded, sending his ship through the atmosphere and defying the antigravity law. While the antigravity wanted him to float, his ship when flying forwards, faster than the ships behind him could follow. He could only watch in despair as he soared past planets and stars in turn, hoping and praying that he would get close to a planet to land before his ship ran out of fuel.

Then he was caught in a gravity sphere. His ship, which normally would have shot right past the small, insignificant planet, was caught onto its gravity. Instead of going forward, his ship started falling out of space and into the sky. His fear started to turn to rage when instead of a high-galactic world that he could use to start his quest for power, he was caught by a small, useless rock. When he'd wanted to be at a planet with high galactic communications, and the ability to start at the top, he realized the world he was seeing was barely above a level 2 planet.

And worst of all? From his quick glimpses at the maps in the pod and the world when he was a distance form it, he was able to recognize the world.

Earth.


	3. First Sign of Kindness

First Sign of Kindness

Uraraka let out a yawn. "Mm…I wish we didn't have to get here so early."

Jiro poured herself a great mug's worth of black coffee while she nodded in agreement. "Yeah. If only fires and natural disasters waited until at least ten in the morning, huh?"

The morning after their dinner, Uraraka and Jiro were sitting at the kitchen in the fire-departments station. After their morning workout the two women had finally gotten a break to get something to eat. Jiro was currently wondering where her life could have gone so wrong to make her get up at 5 to be at work on time while Uraraka was glad she got any sleep at all. After the reminder Monomo had given her last night, she was so worried it was a miracle she even made it to her bed. Course the amount of sleep she got wasn't anything to be proud of, but that's what morning workout and tea is for. There were a few other stragglers from their work around them, but the two women were so focused on trying to not collapse on the counter that they didn't notice them.

"I just wish we didn't have to come here when nothing was happening," Jiro complained, quietly to avoid catching 13, the chief's, attention. "I could be getting stuff done at home." Sure, Uraraka understood Jiro's desire to get more sleep. But she did not agree to that. They were paid to get stuff done in the firehouse, even when nothing was happening. It was easy money.

Besides. "We always need someone to be ready just in case something happens. What would we do if the alarms went off and there was no one ready to deal with the problem?"

Jiro just rolled her eyes as she practically gulped down the coffee. "Oh sure, take the dutiful worker route. How likely is it, really, that something's going to happen at 7 in the morning? On a Wednesday? Even with the drought, people are starting to be more conscious about their water supply. And car crashes usually need just a few police cars." Uraraka tried not to let her skeptical look show, but Jiro caught it anyway. "Oh come on. Just you wait, nothing's gonna,"

Before Jiro could even finish her sentence, the alarms went off. Over the sound of people rushing around and jumping to attention, Jiro glared at Uraraka. "You caused this somehow. Didn't you?"

"No," Uraraka promised, but hid her giggle with her hand. "The world must be out to get one of us." Jiro scoffed, mumbling under her breath that with their luck, it was likely both of them. Uraraka kept on a small smile while she took their cups and placed them near the sink. There was no need to rush. It was likely just a stray cat in a tree or maybe even a kid who accidentally called 911.

As she and Jiro rushed to the trucks, she was shocked to find everyone running around in chaos. People who had been there for years and knew the drill were sprinting like there was no tomorrow. Both Uraraka and Jiro gaped at each other, as if making sure the other was seeing the same thing. Confused, Uraraka decided to follow suit and rushed to gather their materials and jump on the truck. When she and Jiro finally managed to pull themselves onto the end of the fire truck, she was lucky to find Shinso next to her. "Shinso! What's going on? Why is everyone in such a rush?"

The normally bored looking man's eyes were alert and ready to move to attention. His eyes flickered to Uraraka with an intensity that startled all the sleep deprivation out of her. "The call came in from the east side of the city. Apparently one of the old apartment buildings was destroyed."

Uraraka thought she'd missed the part where she woke up and was still dreaming. Her mouth must have dropped open as the drivers in the front started the engines. "The entire building?" Ochaco blanched. "Wha- how does that even happen?"

"I don't know," he said with a shake of his head. "But that's not our job. It was a pretty old building so there aren't many people there, but it was also early in the morning. There's likely a number of people who were asleep when it happened. So far the information we've got show no deaths, but there are a number of people missing and likely some caught in the rubble. Our main job is search and rescue. Finding out how it happened is the cop's job." Ochaco nodded, still stunned at this sudden realization. An entire building just…gone? How did that even happen? An earthquake? But then it wouldn't be just one building down…

Explosives? Was it possible someone had caused the building to collapse on purpose? No…Uraraka shook the thought out of her head. It may have been an explosion, but who would want to destroy an old apartment building? Maybe there was a gas leak…Whatever the case, it wasn't time to figure that out. No, Ochaco had to make sure everyone was safe and alive. They had said that so far there were only a few injuries and no reported deaths. But that didn't mean anything. She hoped everyone was okay…

* * *

Bakugou was most certainly not okay.

He growled, pushing rocks and beams out of his face. If it weren't for the extra layer of thick skin he had, he would have been pierced with the metal rods that had fallen on him in the crash. Feh. Like some man-made contraptions from such a pathetic world could ever hurt him.

When his ship had crash-landed, at first he assumed it had landed in a big pile of rocks. Only after looking around did he laugh, realizing that the pile of rocks was actually a human building. People lived in that piece of junk? He shook his head as he assessed the damage. Not the building, he couldn't care less about that. Even though he'd barrelled through the roof, a few floors and ended up in the basement, causing multiple floors to cave in around him, he didn't care. Unfortunately the ship, the thing he really did care about, had been damaged by the laser and the landing. It was beyond repair, even for his abilities. He cursed at his luck. Judging from the building around him, he doubted this planet was civilized enough to create anything beyond basic space-travel. He'd have to build his own rocket to get off this rock.

Also unfortunately, he was so busy thinking about his ship that he didn't give any consideration to how he was going to get out of the mess around him.

Sure he'd been able to get out of the pod. But when he hit the self-destruct on it to make sure it couldn't be tracked, even more of the rocks and foundations around him collapsed. What a weak piece of architecture! It wasn't even a big explosion! Earthling creations must have been even worse than he assumed. What a foolish civilization. Their planet had some of the most powerful, useful natural resources in all of the known galaxies, yet they destroyed it and made towers that could barely survive a small blast? Pathetic. When he ruled this solar system, he would fix that.

Darn it. If he hadn't used so much energy escaping his prison, he would easily be able to lift those rocks and pieces of metal that covered him. But with the loss of power, he wasn't strong enough. He could make it all explode, but without knowing what's going on above, he could just get in worse trouble. If he was free he might be able to climb his way out but the second explosion had sent rocks had caught his right leg. Any pushing or explosions on the rocks would just cause more debris. Freaking stupid human contraptions. He- an international criminal with the power to destroy world and corrupt entire civilizations- was currently stuck underneath a few rocks.

Thanks to the star-like shaped skin behind his ears, he could hear what was going on around him even if he couldn't see it. A while ago there had been lots of annoying, human screams and wail that made him want to just end it all in order to stop listening. Then there had been the sound of primitive engines that stopped when they got close. A few more wailing sounds, some artificial like a machine. A few rocks and boulders smashing together, likely being moved to get citizens out. If that was the case, they would eventually get to him.

That realization sent him on guard once again. Did he want to wait for the humans to catch him? No- Of course not! He could already see their first move. Realizing that what they had found wasn't human. Either he would be killed (Or attempted to be killed. They couldn't kill him) or captured for experimentation. Like he was going to let some low-life's use him as a lab rat.

A few rocks around him shuffled. He realized with a start that the metal around him was being lifted. They were getting closer. Snarling, he threw the shirt off and used his hands to quickly light it on fire. The rest of his clothes would have to do, but he did not want to risk human's recognizing the prison uniform. It was unlikely, but he couldn't risk the idea that some aliens were working undercover on this planet. After bracing his leg carefully, he tracked the area where most of the sound was coming from. Raising both arms he slowly ignited the charges in his arms.

As soon as he saw them, they were done. After they screamed he'd vaporize them, take whatever machines they had, pull himself out and climb away from the debris. What he did after that he'd decide later. For that moment he needed to focus. Wait for the scream…Be ready…

The slab of concrete in front of him was pulled to the side. The rays of their closest stars shot into his eyes, momentarily blinding him. He hissed and covered his face with one arm, ignoring the sounds of the machinery that was likely moving the rocks around him. After a moment to adjust, he slowly opened his eyes to focus on the threat.

It was a human. A female, if their biology was similar to the rest of the world. Unlike many aliens Bakugou knew of, humans certainly looked like they were not biologically adept to survive. The female had soft light skin that would have been easy to break, wide eyes that were easy targets and a big smile that anyone could force poison into but lacked the sharp teeth to fight back. She appeared significantly shorter than Bakugou, and if that was average height for humans, he would easily be able to overpower them. No wonder the humans had so many inventions. It made them feel less inadequate.

The one in front of him at least had large hands for battle, a significant amount of body fat that would keep her warm and muscles that even caused Bakugou to give her a second threat assessment. The brown hair was short too, so it would be harder for an enemy to grab in battle. Was she attractive by human standards? He couldn't tell. He wished he could, because that information would be good if humans were easy to trick with pretty faces. In Bakugou's personal preference, he couldn't care less if she was attractive or ugly, so made no initial judgments. He was more concerned with the large orange and yellow uniform she wore with a metal red hat. Their soldier's uniform? Would he have to fight his way out? To prepare, he raised both arms in a defensive stance. Now he just needed the scream…

"You're alive!" The human gasped, an oddly jubilant smile spreading across her face. "Oh, that's a miracle. We thought if anyone was down at these levels…oh, I'm sorry. Are you hurt?"

Bakugou blinked. Hurt? Him? Maybe if he was a pathetic human he would be dead, but nothing on that stupid rock could hurt him.

Where were the screams? The fear and rage in his opponent that would give him the go to attack? He stared at this human, waiting for the expected reaction and getting nothing. The human frowned at him, showing a curiosity Bakugou did not understand. "Hello? Can you hear me? Were your ears damaged?" Of course not. He wasn't weak. A few explosions couldn't hurt him. But the strange human certainly was confusing him.

When he didn't answer, she mumbled to himself. "Shock. That's okay. Hey, you're going to be okay." Of course he was. It was her who should be afraid. She slowly moved closer, careful with the debris that she moved around so nothing would fall. As she did she caught sight of his leg. "Ah! You're caught! Don't worry, I'll get you out. There's nothing to be afraid of." Bakugou said nothing, staring at this human. His blood started to boil out of anger. What was wrong with her? Was she a human anomaly? Were humans so dumb they couldn't realize when there was a threat right in front of them?

This human- this damaged human, from Bakugou's perspective, managed to get some footing. As soon as she got closer, Bakugou was immediately alert. He raised both arms in defense, snarling as a dinosaur would before it gobbled the defenseless cow hole. The human stopped, clearly startled. Good. At least she had some sense. Now if he could just get a good hit in…

"Hey, hey hey." To Bakugou's utter disbelief, the human reached forward. She took his large hand in hers, clasping it in a firm grasp. He was so startled he didn't even break her fingers. She smiled at him, a warm smile that lacked the usual malice that Bakugou recognized. He couldn't identify her smile. What was she planning? "You don't have to worry. You're safe now. My name is Uraraka Ochaco. I promise to get you out alive." He barely registered the words she was saying. Was she insane? Right on his hand? He could have blown her up instantly! What was wrong with her? Why-

Why did Aizawa flash through his mind? What? How did he somehow relate this human with the intergalactic officer? They looked nothing alike. They were not the same species, and nothing about the setting was the same. For some reason, he could not erase the connection from his mind.

He didn't know. It became very clear to him in that moment that there was a lot of things that he may not know. If he was going to escape this world, potentially take it over, he needed to know things. Like why this human was not afraid. Why she felt the need to ensure his safety instead of annihilating him. What…what she was even doing? He needed to know this.

"What's your name?" He returned to staring at her in surprise. She looked at him expectantly, waiting for an answer. He looked at the innocent, possibly naïve human staring at him. She wanted to help him? Perfect. She'd help him alright. Then, when her usefulness was gone, he'd destroy her.

While clenching her hands tight, he released what must have been a deviously terrifying grin. "Katsuki Bakugou."


	4. Blending In

Blending In

 **From here on is where there are mentions of swearing. I won't write any actual swear words, but you'll get the idea.**

Considering the damage the building's destruction caused, it was a miracle there were no deaths.

She was sure when they noticed there was someone in the basement that they would have been killed. It certainly was a miracle that he had managed to survive with only a caught leg that came out with a few bruises. How did that even happen? He should have been crushed by debris! It was a five story building and he was in the basement! Well, whatever. Ochaco wasn't about to go questioning miracles.

After she'd managed to bring the man- Bakugou Katsuki- out of the wreckage and to one of the ambulances, she went searching for Shinso and thirteen to find out what the status report was. Luckily they'd managed to get their quickly, and for the time there were no immediate worries. Ochaco had forgotten it was a long weekend, so a lot of people had left to visit family. And considering it was an old building anyway, not many people lived there. They were still working on numbers and clearing debris to make sure, but so far there were no missing people and the worst injury were some broken bones. One person had a collapsed lung, but the medics seemed assured they would be able to fix him up quickly.

From what she could see, it looked more like it would cost a lot for the owners to deal with than a matter of lives lost. But Ochaco felt some sympathy for the situation. Of course being hurt and scared like that would be traumatizing. But losing their home? Uraraka didn't want to imagine how hard that would be. If anything happened to the farmhouse…

Uraraka made sure to wait till everyone was cleared before even considering taking a break. Only after thirteen assured her there was no one else left in the wreckage did she go check on the injured. Most with immediate injuries had been brought back right away, while others waited on the sidewalk. The police had wanted everyone to be transported to the hospital whether their injuries appeared serious or not. The cover story was that they wanted to make sure there were no internal injuries. Secretly Ochaco wondered if they wanted a secure place to question people.

After taking a quick swig of water, Ochaco noticed one man sitting at the sidewalk. Well, not really noticed. She had known he was there the entire time she had been working. However, the man had been staring at her with such intensity she could feel it even when she wasn't looking at him. Even when he shouldn't be able to see her! The thought sent shivers down her spine. Cautiously she turned her head slightly to meet his eyes. Just like she thought, he was staring straight into her eyes. She jumped a bit before collecting herself. If she'd been paying closer attention she would have noticed the smirk when he saw that.

Her first initial thought was that he was in shock. But while he showed all the signs, there was no actual…shock. He wasn't speaking, wasn't reacting much, acted defensive and reminded her of a robot. But when the doctors checked his heartrate, they said it was fine. There was no fear or disturbance in his eyes. He just seemed to survey the area as if taking it all in for the first time. Even when he glared at Ochaco, it looked more like he was studying her than afraid of the situation around her. He certainly was a scary looking guy. But hey. Uraraka wasn't going to let that bother her! She'd dealt with a lot of scary looking guys who turned out to be big softies!

Placing the water down, she went over to the stranger's side. He immediately tensed up when she got closer and she had to hide a giggle. He wasn't afraid of her, was he? Well, given the situation, she decided she wouldn't push the idea. She tried to put on a happy appearance as she plopped down next to her. "Hey! How are you holding up?" The man said nothing. He tilted his head to her, his spiky blond hair shifting in the breeze as he did. Such a nice day for such destruction.

Bakugou Katsuki was…attractive. If Ochaco were a 15 year old again she would have blushed and stuttered her words at first. It's a good thing she'd become more (at least a little bit more) mature in her firefighter training. The man had spiky blonde hair that could seriously use a comb in Uraraka's opinion. It might have been because of the explosion. He was fairly tall, at least 6 foot. He had to be taller than Midoriya, maybe even Iida. He looked strong, though his muscles weren't toned. Either way, he definitely worked out. Uraraka seemed to have a thing for strong people. Who knows, maybe he could make that list of friends as well. Despite the scary expression, he had a handsome face. She wasn't sure how she found such a scary looking guy attractive, but she did. Maybe it was something with her work that made dangerous people seem less worrisome.

Even if he was a model (Which he wasn't) that wasn't her job. She needed to make sure he was alright. "You told the medics where it hurts, right? Were they able to fix up your leg?" Again, Bakugou said nothing. Beyond the name she hadn't been able to get much out of him. The thought worried her. His throat hadn't been damaged, had it? "Can you speak? Does your throat hurt?" She didn't want to touch him without permission, so she tried pointing at her own throat. He scrunched his nose in annoyance and looked at her like she was insane. What? Did he not understand-

"Oh? Do you speak English?" Again, he said nothing. It appeared he registered what she was saying, but didn't respond. It could have been a combination of not completely understanding the language and the shock that stopped him from responding. "Ah, that's okay! I'm sure they have translators back at the hospital." She gave him a pat on the back as reassurance, making him flinch. "Once the shock wears off, you'll be fine."

"Uraraka!" The pair looked up to see Jiro calling to her from the truck. "We're heading over to the hospital to get a quick medical check while the others fix the rest up here. Are you good to go?" Shifting back to Fire-fighter mode instead of concerned citizen, Uraraka jumped to attention.

"Of course!" jumping to her feet, she turned back to a startled Bakugou. "I'll meet you back at the hospital, okay? Don't worry!" he just blinked at her, still silent. Uraraka sighed, but decided not to dwell on it.

Jiro waited for Ochaco to reach her side before leaning closer to her. "Who was that?" She whispered, sending furtive glances back at the man who continued to stare at Uraraka as she left. Uraraka held back a giggle. Of course Jiro would also notice the guy. They were both professional, but that didn't mean they couldn't notice a cute guy. And Jiro happened to get even more nervous and flustered than Uraraka did!

"His name is Bakugou Katsuki," Ochaco started to explain, preparing to tell the story of how he miraculously survived the basement level, but when she double checked Jiro's expression it wasn't the flushed face she had expected. There wasn't the layer of fear that other hand, since Jiro seemed to fear nothing except for flirting and the sexual education class they'd needed to take during the basic health classes. But she did have an expression of caution. And what looked like…confusion? A little bit uncomfortable? As If Bakugou had done something to weird her out. Well, the staring and scary expression was weird but…Confused, Uraraka gently nudged her shoulder to catch her attention. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing! I'm not judging!" Judging? Ochaco raised her eyebrow while Jiro hesitated. "It's just…" she leaned closer, as if to share a secret. "That costume…that's pretty realistic looking, right? Kind of weird too…" Costume?

Only when Jiro pointed it out did Ochaco pay closer attention. She hadn't realized just how…odd the man she had saved looked. She'd been so focused on making sure there were no lasting injuries and the fact that he had survived being in the basement that she hadn't paid closer attention. His sharp eyes were outlined with a large, thick layer of what must have been black makeup. It looked almost like a mask. There were these large, green tube things shaped like grenades on his arms. Cardboard? Metal? Then his hands were covered by what had to be oddly-shaped gloves. He wasn't wearing a shirt, which revealed a small procession of fake spikes that went down his back. They looked almost reptilian. He must have used a lot of makeup and clay for that. His mouth was set in a frown, but his lips were so wide that it HAD to be makeup. Behind his ears he had some flappy things that made his ears look sharp. Then there was a…a tail? Wow, and it looked sharp! She wondered what he'd made that out of. His boots were very big, with metal spikes. For his sake, she hoped they weren't real. The police wouldn't be happy. Actually, when she looked at the eyes that were staring at her, she realized with a start that they were…red? How…huh.

That explained why everyone was keeping their distance. She'd assumed at first it was because of the dark expression on his face. Was he into cosplay? If he was, his skills were very good. Even the tail, which had to be fake, it looked so real she could almost see it move. How he'd managed to keep it all on through the explosion was a mystery. When she came out of her trance she realized that Jiro was looking at her expectantly. "I'm not sure," She answered. "I think he's in shock right now. We can ask him later." Jiro frowned, but nodded.

As they were preparing to take the truck back to the hospital with Shinso, they were interrupted. "Excuse me, may I ask you three some questions?" the three firefighters turned to find two people behind them. One was a police officer, a detective probably. He wore a long dark coat above a suit and had black, spiky hair. The badge on his jacket said 'Detective Tokoyami.' The second person…Monomo? Uraraka felt her heart skip a beat. What was he doing there? Was he trying to terrify her into giving up the house? The officer didn't seem to notice the cocky smirk on Monomo's face when he saw Uraraka's fear. "We wanted to know if you three had noticed anything while moving the debris. Some evidence of an explosion or a gas leak…" Why would that have gotten Monomo…?

Oh right. Monomo was a big time property contractor. He owned a number of properties, not just her house. Well, he wouldn't own that one for long!

"Our job was to make sure everyone was alright and get all the people out alive," Jiro answered. "We weren't really paying attention to something like that." Monomo frowned, but Tokoyami nodded.

"Of course. I just wanted to hear if you'd noticed anything."

"We just want to know what happened," Monomo questioned, earning a glare from officer Tokoyami. Uraraka glared to. The police probably wanted to make sure there was no foul play and that it really was an accident. Monomo probably wanted to know for insurance cases. He didn't want to have to pay for it.

She sincerely hoped that it was an accident, so that none of the poor tenants would have to pay for it all. Monomo's company could probably pay for it easily.

"We don't know anything as of yet," Shinso told him, his tone holding a sense of finality. "There was nothing there that showed evidence of foul play. But we couldn't find the source of the explosion either." With a quick nod, he pulled himself behind the driver's seat. "If you have any more questions, you can contact our chief. For now, we need to go." Monomo frowned, but the officer nodded.

"Alright. Thank you for your service." The three firefighters nodded. After the two stepped back Shinsou drove away without looking back. Uraraka on the other hand watched them both as they drove away. She hadn't realized there was no evidence of foul play or source of an explosion. They should have found at least something to point to one or the other. What else could have caused a building to collapse?

* * *

The room they'd forced Bakugou into was absolutely filthy.

When the human-Uraraka, had left, Bakugou had been brought to a chemical smelling metal building that was filled with the stench of death, blood and terror.

So it smelled like home.

They'd placed him in a small room by himself. At first it looked like they were going to put their needles and knives into him. Luckily Bakugou was spared the effort of fighting back when someone told them that it was just his leg, and they were too busy with others to worry about him. So instead they'd shoved him into a small room with a little screen, a bed and some random shelves before rushing away.

What had happened to that weird human? He'd lost sight of her when they'd dragged him into a metal piece of human transport. Which was VERY slow by the way. He needed to find her if he was going to get more information on the world he was currently stuck in. Once he learned all he needed to know, it was time to attack. He'd attack any resistance or human soldiers that they had. He'd find out who was in charge of this planet. When he was finally running the planet, he would…Shoot. What did he know about human politics again? Was it that easy? How did their culture work? That was the kind of stuff he needed to know before he could take over. But he needed that human in order to do that. Where did she go?

Either way, Bakugou didn't plan on twiddling his tail around waiting for her. He needed information. While doing that, he needed to avoid catching anyone's eye. Moving over to the window, he watched the humans move around in their small, insignificant ways. He paid close attention to those who were being operated on. Specifically the males. Two legs. Two arms. A head. Torso. Eyes. Ears. But no tail, ear enhancers, spikes, dark shadows or weaponized arms. If he was going to blend in, he was going to need to avoid standing out.

Now that he had male subjects to be sure, (he did not want to accidentally model himself on a female subject) he made sure to block off all the windows and doors. Taking a deep breath, he focused on his design. Thankfully Overhaul hadn't been so stupid to not give Bakugou the ability to shapeshift at least some parts of his body in order to blend in. Concentrating, he was able to make the tubes around his arms shrink until they disappeared into his arms, leaving only a black design of the square pattern. Unfortunately that would not go away, so it would have to do. The ear enhancers blended with his ears so that his ears became slightly pointed in three different places. The metal boots he simply took off, though the pants would hopefully not catch too much attention. The dark shadows around his eyes dissipated, but the red in his eyes remained. His spikes also shrank so that only black dots in their places remained. His mouth was smoothed out so it wasn't as wide, but his fangs had to remain pointed. The tail wouldn't go away, but he was able to swing it around and make it look like a belt as that general had done. After double checking himself he was satisfied that he looked at least a satisfactory amount human. Any more and it wouldn't matter what the humans thought. He himself would throw up at the idea of having to change himself to look like those weaklings anymore.

With that settled, he had to deal with communication. It seemed like his source of information, Uraraka, liked to speak a lot. That was fine, but she seemed to have a lot of questions for him. He didn't care to answer any of them, but he doubted it would be as easy to get information from her if she became suspicious of him. Even as she had walked away, that other female had sent him a number of odd glances. He needed Uraraka for information. He couldn't risk the other humans stopping him out of their own suspicion.

But how? Again, he made a space in the window so he could see the humans interacting. Unfortunately he could not hear them from where he was. But off in the distance, he noticed a small group of them watching a screen. In the screen was another human, acting out strange scenes and pictures. If it really was like a connector screen Bakugou thought it was, then he should be able to learn their language through that. He turned back to the screen that was in his own room. It took him only a few seconds to figure out how to turn it on, and when it did he was greeted with the sight of one human punching another. Bakugou blinked, watching as two humans chased down another who used a weapon to shoot rocks at them, calling 'you'll never take me alive, coppers!'

A human shooting another? Well, despite the primitive technology, Bakugou could at least easily get information from that.

It must have been hours later until his human finally resurfaced. He was startled at the sound of knocking on his door before turning from the show called 'criminal minds' to see Uraraka in the door. She waved cheerfully before letting herself in. "At least you got the TV working," She stated, sounding happy as Bakugou watched her movements with interest. "When they said they'd left you here for so long, I was worried you'd get bored." He wasn't sure why she seemed so concerned with the idea of him being bored. Could humans get sick merely from boredom? How pathetic.

"…Of course I figured it out," Bakugou growled. "Your primitive human technology was barely a challenge." Uraraka spun around to stare at him, to shocked to really register what he had said.

"You know English!" she appeared excited. Over just the ability of speech? Gosh, he'd found quite the idiot as his guide.

"Yes. Of course I f#$%g do." Uraraka blinked. Bakugou wasn't sure what he'd said wrong, but she almost looked offended. Truthfully his voice sounded rough, even to him. He'd never bothered speaking before because he'd never wanted to. But now that he did, it seemed more like a pain then a necessity. He'd have to get used to it.

Uraraka hesitated, caught off-guard. Maybe her initial idea that he was attractive had been given to quickly. "Right…well, uh…Oh! You got rid of the costume? Where did you put it?" She started searching the room for a non-existent costume and coming up empty. "Oh…Uh, not important. How are you feeling?"

How was he feeling? "Annoyed as f$*k." Uraraka was surprised. She would have expected afraid, or nervous or even exhausted. But…Annoyed? Bakugou debated raging further, but his experience with the 'television' showed that he still had a lot to learn about their culture. He decided to keep as much about himself a secret as he could.

"I…I see." Quickly getting back on her feet Uraraka continued. "Well, the doctors said that you're free to go. Officer Tokoyami might want to talk to you later, but he looked really busy last I saw him. You'll probably just need to stay in town. Do you…" She hesitated. "I'm…I'm really sorry about your home. That must have been really hard losing…Do you have anyone you can call? Relatives or friends or…" His home? A light lit in Bakugou's head. She assumed he had lived in that building. Inwardly he raged at the idea that he had ever lived in such a small, insignificant little place.

When he didn't answer, Ochaco assumed he was still struggling to come to terms with losing his apartment. Had all his belongings been in that house? Hesitantly, she placed a comforting hand on Bakugou's shoulder. His head spun around to look at her, shock clear on his face. She offered a warm smile. "Don't worry. It will be okay. You'll figure something out. I'm sure the insurance company will find you a place soon."

Bakugou didn't understand. What would be okay? Why was she smiling at him? She must have been an oddity. The humans in the screen had certainly not been as…odd as she was.

"In the meantime," Uraraka jumped back, her cheeks turning bright red with joy. "You can come stay at my place! It's really big, and it's pretty far away so you can have some privacy if you need time. You'll probably only need to stay there for a few weeks, a month at the most. That is, unless you have someone you can call?" Honestly Uraraka was very hesitant to bring a stranger into her home. Into her parents' home. But he had just lost his apartment…and judging from his reaction, he didn't have anyone he could call or anyone he could go to. If she'd lost her home, she'd be absolutely devastated. Her parents would have done the same thing, she was sure.

Bakugou shook his head, lifting Uraraka's spirits as she did. "Great! I'll just go make sure everything's fine with the doctor and my boss, then I'll come get you! Okay?" After Bakugou nodded, she rushed off to find thirteen, a smile on her face as she did. At least she could do something to help in this tragedy.

When she was gone however, Bakugou's smirk promised deviance. Puny human. In a few days he would be running that world and she would be down at his feet begging for mercy.


	5. Don't Blow Up My Home

Don't Blow Up My Home

The hospital was only a short walk from her house, which Uraraka was grateful for. It probably wasn't a good idea to bring Bakugou on a bus after what he'd just lived through. Besides, she was pretty sure he lost his wallet in the explosion.

The doctor had readily agreed to the idea, to Ochaco's surprise. He said the fresh aid and distance from the middle of the city would be good for him. He'd given her his contact information if Bakugou started showing signs of mental trauma or if she couldn't handle it herself. Apparently they hadn't found his name or identification anywhere, so they didn't know how to deal with him yet. The insurance company, luckily, had yet to prove any of the citizens had a part in the destruction yet. Because of that they had to help pay for their necessities while all their property was destroyed. They'd given Uraraka a lump-sum to help Bakugou pay for food, clothes and other necessities until he could get back whatever debit and credit cards he may have lost in the fire. Immediately Uraraka had set the money to the side, promising herself that she would not take any of the money for herself. Even if she was worried about her house, Bakugou had just lost everything. He needed it more than she did.

Thirteen had tried to give her some time off when she heard what she was doing, but Ochaco couldn't accept it. She still needed the money for her house. Bakugou was an adult, even if he was under her care. She was sure he would find stuff to do while she was at work. He probably had his own stuff to do anyway.

"It's a little far from the city. Do you have to be at work tomorrow?" Bakugou gave her a blank stare which Ochaco didn't need interpretation for. "Right. Yeah, I guess you wouldn't want to go back to work after that." There was a silence as they walked down the path to her house. Bakugou was busy studying the world around him to pay attention to what the round-faced human was saying. Besides, he was working. Just not in the way that he was expecting he would have to.

Who cares? He's still gonna take over the world. If it takes a bit more time, he could live with that.

They continued on, Bakugou oblivious to what Uraraka considered an awkward atmosphere. She wished she could say something to get him to…open up about how he was feeling. Bakugou really did not seem like the touchy-feely kind of guy, but it was important to acknowledge your emotions, right? How else would you deal with them? Unfortunately Uraraka didn't know how to make him see that. Heck, she wasn't really sure how to make him see anything at the moment. She had no idea what he was thinking.

Well, Uraraka thought with a sigh. Her mother had always told her the first way to a man was through his stomach. If she couldn't comfort him through words, then food would have to do.

As they passed another very human building, his human did something different. Instead of walking past it, she rushed up the small hill towards it. Confused, Bakugou followed her, not sure why this building was different than the other boring places they'd already passed. But when he got up to the steps, Uraraka spread out her arms with that annoying wide grin on her face. "This is my home! Tada!"

Really? He took a second to take a gander at the building he was apparently supposed to live in for the next few days. It was at least two stories, a light shade of blue with white accents. It was surrounded by a forest with a big plain of grass where Bakugou could continue to train. Excellent. The problem was the quality of the house. Many of the windows in the top levels were broken. The sitting area had only a few measly plastic chairs. The third step to the door was broken. All the colours were faded. It was mediocre for aesthetics and even worse for security. If this was Bakugou's hideaway, he wouldn't last a day.

Uraraka could see the obvious doubt and distain in Bakugou's eyes. "Yeah, sorry, it's not in the best shape. I had to sell a few things of furniture to pay it off, and I haven't been able to afford proper repairs. But once this house is all mine and I've saved up, it will be looking good as new!" She pumped her arms in excitement. Bakugou just looked skeptically from her to the house and back again. What did one little building matter? All of the world was gonna be destroyed soon.

When Bakugou said nothing Uraraka decided to move on. "Come on in! I'll show you around!" She bounded through the doors while Bakugou trudged on behind her. As she skipped through, Bakugou made sure to take in every detail of the house in case he needed to find some weapons there. There were the pointed edges of images with two adults and a young girl. The lone coat that was hung over a hook on the wall. The large wooden stairs that needed a good clean in Bakugou's opinion. The papers all piled onto a small desk. Chairs that had dents in them…Heck the outside had only just been the beginning. The whole place could use some cleaning.

"Here's the kitchen," Uraraka stated, gently pulling Bakugou in. He snarled a bit at her hand on his arm, but Uraraka pulled away quickly. She had forgotten that he had lost his shirt in the wreckage. She'd been trying too hard not to ask about his…odd tattoos on his arms and back that she'd ignored the fact that Bakugou might actually be cold. "Oh, right! Remind me when I go upstairs to get you a shirt. I think I've got some of the clothes Midoriya left when he stayed over a few nights ago. You can borrow that!" Midoriya? Who was that? The name sounded weak. "Anyway, here's the oven, fridge, table, ext.!" She showed him a small room furnished with only a few necessities. "There, ah, isn't much food right now, but the insurance company gave you a good amount. Once we buy things you may need phones and such. We'll work out a budget for some food. We'll both pay an equal amount when it comes to food, I promise!" Bakugou didn't seem to notice her talking. Instead he was focused on the first piece of machinery she'd pointed out.

An oven…He wasn't sure what that was…

But the machinery looked like it would be a GREAT tool for the ship he would build.

Uraraka began to worry over the intense aura around Bakugou when he stared at her oven. Did he…like cooking? "Ah…If you like cooking, I can show you how everything works later…" Bakugou said nothing. Perhaps he was hungry? Yeah, she had been planning on getting him to eat something, right? Hadn't the doctor been saying he should eat some food? He'd missed both lunch and breakfast by then. "Just wait here, I'll make us something!" While Bakugou continued to form a plan in his head, Uraraka hurried over to the fridge. Unfortunately there wasn't much other than Yaoyorozu's leftovers. She hadn't had the chance to go shopping, and with the bills she rarely got any more than she needed. Cringing, she decided to just make some sandwiches. Hey, he probably shouldn't eat anything fancy if he was still in shock. Grabbing the bits of chicken and lettuce she still had left, she hurried over to the shelf to grab some bread. "I hope you like chicken! It's not real fancy or anything, but it will fill up your," When Uraraka turned, she gaped at the empty space where Bakugou had been. "B-Bakugou!"

There was the sound of a grunt coming from upstairs. After setting the sandwich on the counter she rushed up the stairs as fast as she could. When she got there Bakugou was in her father's old library, staring at his old record player. It took her a moment to catch her breath. How had he gotten up their so fast? "Bakugou, could you not sneak around like that? If you want to see everything, I'll show you!" Bakugou merely blinked at her. She was starting to wish for the day when he had recovered from his shock and start talking again. The silence was getting annoying!

As if granting her wish, Bakugou pointed at the record player. "What is this f #$*%g thing?" Then again, with that kind of language…

"A record player," Uraraka told him. "Have you never used one?" Bakugou said nothing, once again focusing on the little machine. The gears he could hear inside of it would be useful to make a cooling part for his engine. As he debated this, Uraraka pushed through some of her father's boxes. She pulled out one of her father's favourite songs. "Here, this one is by Elton John. I know, most of his songs are on the internet now, but dad liked to collect these things when he could afford them." Uraraka placed the record onto the player before selecting her favourite song, 'Your song.' But as soon as the player started playing music, Bakugou recoiled. He hissed, jumping back into a defensive position while barring his hands into fists. He didn't even notice when Uraraka stared at him like he had lost his mind.

 _Did he just hiss at a record player?_ She was starting to have second thoughts about inviting this man into her house. Well, it didn't seem like he was interested in stealing anything of value at least. He looked more interested in her old record player and the oven. Some of her friends were pretty weird to strangers. She was sure she could get used to him. "I…guess I startled you? If you've never seen or…heard of a…record player…" How had someone not even heard of a record player? Slowly, Bakugou started to calm down as he realized it was just playing music. It was an odd, human sounding music, but it was no threat.

After what Uraraka could have sworn was a grunt, Bakugou pushed past her and back into the hallway. Uraraka was starting to wonder if manners were a foreign concept for this guy. Regardless, she'd promised to help him. Besides, it might be nice, having someone stay with her a few days. It was a very big house that could get quite lonely sometimes. "Come on, I'll show you the guest room. We've got two, but my parent's old room is probably too big. Unless you want a big room!"

His human went on and on while he continued to search the rooms. She gestured to one fairly large door at the side, and he was interested at first. If there was a laboratory or weapons closet, that would be convenient. Then again, he doubted such a weak civilization would even think of something so basic. Instead what caught his eye was one room slightly ajar, with the door itself looking like it was quite worn. Out of curiosity he started towards the room. However, before he could get there, his human let out a yelp.

Startled, he turned to see what had startled her, only to give her time to rush around in front of him and yank the door shut. With a spin she tried to hide the door behind her, looking quite nervous as she did. "Uh, yeah, that's my room. I'd rather this room be off limits, you know? It's kind of embarrassing…" Bakugou scowled at being forced to avoid any room. What could she be keeping in their? Treasures? Explosives? Like any human explosives could possibly cause any more damage than he could. With that thought in mind, he decided it wasn't worth the argument and moved onto another room. "Uh…R-right…"

Bakugou decided to backtrack to the room she had gestured to before. To his disappointment, it wasn't a laboratory or a weapons closet. All that was in the room was what he assumed was supposed to be a bed (it looked too soft), a window, a connected human bathroom (He'd seen them on TV but would need to figure out how they worked), a closet that was empty, an opening to a balcony and a few pictures on the walls. Uraraka rushed in behind him, a wave of nostalgia hitting her as she did. She called it her parent's room, but it wasn't anymore. She'd moved all of their stuff out anyway, since they preferred their garden and the library to their bedroom. It was fashioned like a guest room now if any of her married friends ever came to visit. Uraraka had considered moving in since it was the nicest room, but she never had the time to make the switch. Maybe once she didn't have to work two jobs.

"This is-was my parents room. It's a guest room now I suppose. It hardly gets used," She added, noting the fine layer of dust on the shelf. Bakugou didn't hear her, busy seating himself on the bed. It was archaic, human, annoying, but it also appeared to be the biggest room that he could close the doors of in the building. Obviously it only made sense that he got the biggest room. "Oh, do you want to use this one? Uh…Well, I guess its okay. Not like its being used…"

"This is my room," Bakugou insisted, speaking for the third time since he got there. Uraraka turned back to him, startled. When he saw her reaction he expected some protest. Getting to his feet he stood so that he was towering over her. He doubted he even needed to return to his original form to scare this human. "Is there a problem?" in all fairness, Uraraka did step back in surprise. There was an initial layer of fear in her eyes when he stood. But, just as quickly, a light of determination overtook that.

"There's no need to be like that!" Uraraka insisted. There was a nervous tremble in his voice, but not as much as he expected. "You can use the room, but remember that you're a guest!"

"Eh?" Bakugou snarled back at her, rage starting to grew inside of him. Was this human really trying to stand up to him? Sure he needed her for information, but she'd better not get a big head about that. This human was nothing but a small insect underneath his thumb. He could destroy her in the blink of an eye. This insignificant little…

"Ah!" the human clapped her hands, snapping him out of his contemplations. "Since we're here…" Uraraka rushed out to the hallways. Bakugou watched, startled at the sudden change. Then, just as quickly as she had left, she returned with a black piece of fabric. "Here!" Cheerfully she handed it to him. "A shirt. Midoriya left that here a while ago…Then again, it might be too small…" Her friend Midoriya had gotten much stronger when he started working out, but the man in front of her was quite tall…

After pausing, Bakugou decided there was no point not taking the offering. He grabbed the shirt from her hand and pulled it over his head. The stupid earthen clothing left no holes for his spikes. When he pulled them out again, he'd have to either get a new one or just rip the shirt. As he pondered this, Uraraka was staring at the tattoos on his back and arms. A series of dots…and a grid pattern? What could those possible symbolize? They weren't gang tattoo's, were they? If they were they were very strange ones. She'd had run-ins with a few gang-members in her job, and she hadn't seen tattoos like that before.

After a pause, he went alert. Uraraka stumbled, back, surprised at the sudden change. He sniffed the air, and Uraraka wondered if he smelled a fire. Without a glance at her, Bakugou rushed past her and sprinted down the stairs. Confused, Uraraka followed. When she found him, he was back in the kitchen. Almost as quick as he had come down, he grabbed the sandwich she'd left on the counter and wolfed it down in one gulp.

Uraraka stared in surprise. Had…he hadn't…SMELLED the food, had he? What…That was not the effect of shock or any injuries he could have gotten…What kind of person had she just invited into her home?

Then, as Uraraka silently contemplated calling her friends to diagnosis if her new guest really was insane or not, there was a knock on the door. "Oh! Wait here, I'll get that!" Relieved at the interruption, she rushed off to get it. When she swung the door open, she was overjoyed to see that it wasn't Monomo behind the door.

"Midoriya!"

Bakugou glanced up. Who?

…

* * *

If these morons didn't stop yelling at each other in the next ten minutes, Aizawa was going to take an escape pod and run away himself. While he didn't condone Bakugou's actions officially…

He would admit that the boy may have been onto something.

Currently Aizawa was struggling to remain sane as members of the council all seemed to yell gibberish at each other across the table. Endeavor was yelling at a poor court member Aizawa didn't even know the name of. Midnight was rubbing her eyes as Nezu tried to come up with some kind of strategy. Even the soldier known as the jeanist had been called in to help deal with this dilemma, though it seemed pointless since the poor man barely got a word in edgewise. Everyone was talking over each other, any plans people came up with were scraped, and at this point Aizawa could figure out if they were trying to push Bakugou into a vat of boiling water or chase him down a waterfall. Did either of those plans make sense? No. Did either of them solve the problem at hand? Still no. Aizawa just wanted to take a nap.

"The monster needs to be destroyed!" Endeavor insisted, slamming his fist down on the table. A few members jumped back, though Midnight, Aizawa and Nezu just sighed. Aizawa sent a loathing glare in the general's direction. He had told him numerous times to stop calling Bakugou a monster. His name was Bakugou!

Gosh, that kid. 25 years old maybe, but he may as well be a kid. The boy still had the temper of a child and the maturity of a brat. What was that guy thinking, running away like that? He could have still convinced the court to give him a chance. Executions normally didn't take place for at least a month after the sentence, time which Aizawa could have used. He knew a number of people who would have been willing to take Bakugou on if Aizawa was with them. Now, after this stunt, there was no chance. The aliens who found him would shoot him on site.

His only chance now was if whoever brought him in was able to catch him alive. But Aizawa doubted Bakugou would let that happen twice.

"Our first priority needs to be how we get to him," Nezu interjected, calming the chaos enough so that people could listen. Nezu, the animaphorbic alien, was a shining white little creature with fur, paws and a snout. None of that really mattered though. What was interesting was the genius brain he had that made everyone bend to his will. "Ingenium, are you positive that your trackers last saw him heading towards the planet earth?"

Ingenium, an alien with metal legs that enabled him to move quickly and cyborg parts that helped him pilot ships, nodded. "Yes. We can't say exactly where he landed on the planet, but we are fairly certain it was in that direction." As he said it, Ingenium's face fell. "The world is barely classified as a level 2 world…They aren't even a part of the universal federation of peace…" Everyone who knew him could tell what he was worried about. A world like that, even with a dense population, wouldn't stand a chance against someone like Bakugou.

Aizawa wanted to say Bakugou wouldn't hurt any of them. But he wasn't that idealistic. "Can't we track the pod?" Midnight asked.

"We lost signal from it almost immediately after we lost sight of him." _He must have known they would use the ship to track him and destroyed it,_ Aizawa guessed.

"Then we need to send someone in to find him," Endeavor concluded. While Aizawa may have had his issues with the man, he agreed with that. Just sitting there talking about it wasn't doing them anything. "We should send in an army. A handful of soldiers should be enough to,"

"No," Aizawa interjected quickly, before the idea could get in anyone's heads. "As Ingenium said, this planet is a level 2 planet. We can't interfere with their lives like that. Also, Bakugou would see a force like that coming from a mile away. Not only may be able to defeat them, but the civilians who live there would get caught in the crossfire." Endeavor looked angry that his plan was shot down, but he couldn't come up with an argument against it.

Midnight seemed to consider what Aizawa had said. "So what do you suggest?" She asked, careful with her tone. Aizawa knew she was trying to be soft on him, considering her decision towards had been completely against Aizawa's hopes. Aizawa didn't think talking to her about it anytime soon was a good idea.

While he could easily spot out the faults in other plans, he struggled to come up with his own. Luckily, Nezu had already come up with one. "If we cannot send a handful of soldiers," he started while rubbing his chin. "Then just a small force. Maybe two or three who would not get noticed and could either lure Bakugou out somewhere we could catch him without bothering the populace, or they could catch him themselves."

A few members of the council seemed to like this plan (or perhaps they just didn't want to argue with an alien known as a genius), though Endeavor frowned in frustration. "Whoever goes then would need to be strong enough to contain the monster." Aizawa fumed silently. "I suggest I go to catch the cretin myself them. I will take three of my best soldiers,"

"No," Midnight interrupted, surprising even Aizawa. "Endeavor you-stand out. You don't know anything about earthen culture, and you definitely wouldn't be able to blend in enough to find him. You saw the boy during the trial, he despised you. If he saw you from even a mile away he'd explode." Again Endeavor fumed, but Midnight did not give him the chance to argue. "We need someone who could lure him into a sense of security. Someone he trusts, or at least doesn't hate, to some degree." Immediately she waved a hand at Aizawa. "Aizawa knew Bakugou while he was here. We all saw how he was able to calm him in the court. He's our best bet." If she wanted to get back in Aizawa's good graces, she did just that. With this chance he could bring Bakugou back alive, maybe give him some kind of chance…

"But if we send someone he recognizes, we get the same problem," Endeavor reasoned. "He'd see him, know what he's there for, and bolt. Maybe go somewhere we couldn't catch him." While Aizawa hated it, he had a good point that Aizawa could not argue.

"Then we send someone else in with him," Nezu interjected. "Aizawa and a soldier. One who looks somewhat human that can get close to him, then bring him to Aizawa." That made Aizawa frown. He didn't want a potentially volatile soldier who could attack Bakugou right away. "Aizawa can pick a soldier himself. Since he knows Bakugou best, he can figure out who would be able to handle him best." Sometimes Aizawa didn't give Nezu enough credit.

"Alright. What about the earth humans?" It was Ingenium's turn to interject. "I'm worried about what all our interfering will do to them. They are barely ready for interspace travel, much less the knowledge that there are species outside of their worlds." Right. That was an issue. Dealing with world's level 2 or lower was such a rarity it was hardly a problem. They usually made sure to leave them alone until they came to them.

"Do we have any experts on earth culture?" Midnight asked. A few of their gazes locked and slowly, everyone was thinking the same thing. And that thought made Aizawa go pale.

Oh.

Oh no.

…

* * *

"YEAAAAH I know earth culture! I study level 2 worlds all the time!"

Aizawa flinched. Present Mic, or Mic for short, was an alien with a long yellow antennae on the top of his head, black eyes that looked like goggles and long droopy fingers, was one of the top experts on underdeveloped worlds. It was his job to study them, make sure no one interfered with their planets, and figure out when they were ready to be involved with other worlds. But Aizawa knew Mic personally. The man was from a planet where everything was constantly loud and annoying. Which meant he was loud and annoying.

Wonderful.

"Perfect," Midnight nodded happily. "Then Eraserhead will go with Mic to find the escaped prisoner and bring him back for execution," Midnight insisted on the last word, but Eraserhead would not look her in the eye. She huffed in annoyance. "To make sure that you complete your mission, I'm going to send a soldier with you."

"Oh right," Mic tilted his head to the side in curiosity. "Who'd you pick?"

Luckily, Aizawa had been debating the prospect as they went looking for Mic. A number of names ran through his head, but when it came to dealing with Bakugou, that list was shortened exponentially. In the end, there was only one soldier he knew would be able to help. A young lad from the crimson planet. Young, somewhat inexperienced, but able to keep his head and had a soft heart. That was exactly what Aizawa needed.

"The Red Riot," Aizawa told them both. "Kirishima. I'll contact him. We'll leave in two days."


	6. The Human Inhabitants

The Human Inhabitants

"Midoriya! I'm so glad you're here!"

Uraraka's best friend for longer than she could even remember gave her his familiar sunshine smile. "Uraraka! Hey!" Before he could speak up, Uraraka grabbed him and forced him into a hug. He yelped, face turning red as she squeezed him into a hug. "I-It's good to see you! It's been a while."

"Well yeah! A trip to Washington would do that." She finally released him, keeping the smile on her face. "Phone calls and video chats for weeks-do you know how much I missed you!" Izuku rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. His trip to Washington was supposed to last only two weeks, but it ended up going for a month. Couldn't conferences at the Pentagon be a little shorter? When she released him, she noticed two more people standing behind him. "Tsyuu! Todoroki!" Uraraka beamed. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you there!"

Tsyuu smiled back at her. "That's fine. It's good to see you." Todoroki nodded in agreement. Todoroki was a detective, and had high ties with the government, so he'd gone with Midoriya for the conference. Tsyuu on the other hand was an elementary school teacher, but when Midoriya had been gone for so long she'd driven up to meet him. Uraraka would be lying if she said she wasn't a bit envious of their relationship. She wished someone would drive that far away to come visit her sometimes. But life as a firefighter with another job on top of it just didn't leave her time to meet anyone.

Then again, she was quite satisfied with the great friends that she had. "Come on in! I ah- I don't really have much food right now…"

"We brought some lunch."

"You're a life-saver Tsyuu!" Ochaco tried not to squeal with delight when her friends pulled out containers with what looked like pizza and veggies. It had become an unspoken agreement among their group of friends that they would always eat at Ochaco's place, but whoever came had to bring the food. While she was very grateful for this, her heart sank at the reminder that she couldn't afford to host all her friends herself. When she'd paid all the bills, she was going to fix the house and invite all her friends over to a huge pizza party!

The sound of clattering dishes and scraping of chairs caught her friend's attention. "Oh! Do you have someone over Uraraka?" She'd forgotten all about that!

"Yeah, I do! His place was destroyed…ah, it's a long story. Come on, I'll introduce you to him and tell you the story." No curious, her friends followed her out of the hall and towards this mysterious stranger. None of them noticed Todoroki tensing as they turned the corner into the kitchen. They were all too busy staring.

Bakugou, for some reason Uraraka couldn't name, had climbed on top of the table and was trying to…pull the lights out of the chandelier? All four humans stared at him, three mouths dropped open in surprise. Todoroki's eyes were as wide as his friends, but instead of the slack-jawed shock his friends felt, Todoroki immediately tensed up. His tattoos…

After he'd taken one of the lightbulbs out, Bakugou glanced down and saw the four humans. Had his human multiplied? No…When he actually cared to pay attention, he noticed that they all looked different. Two males and a female had come. And they were all staring at him. "What the H#$l do you want?" Midoriya blinked, even more stunned than the time he'd come to visit and Ochaco had been babysitting Tsyuu's snake before he'd met her.

"He's not very polite," the short thin female with long green hair commented. Say what? What did she know? He didn't care if he was rude, he wasn't going to waste his time trying to waste some weak organisms from a planet he was going to take over in a probably a month.

Snarling, Bakugou jumped down from the table. Three of the humans' jumped back in surprise, making Bakugou sneer. Weaklings. Extras in what was going to be his story. The corner of his eye did catch that the one human, one with half white half red hair, did not react the same way his fellow humans did. He watched Bakugou with a cool calculation. A superior human? Unlikely. They all seemed the same. The heterochromia in his eyes did catch Bakugou's attention. Did humans come like that? It looked like someone mixed two humans together and forgot to make it look good. The thought made Bakugou snicker. As if he knew what he was thinking, the human's expression hardened in turn. Bakugou raised an eyebrow, silently daring the human to comment.

"Ah, guys!" Uraraka quickly snapped back to reality and jumped to Bakugou's side, cutting off his sight of the annoying human. "This is Bakugou Katsuki. He's going to be staying me for a little while. He's from the apartment building near downtown that kind of…blew up this morning." That was enough to get even Shouto's attention.

"The entire apartment building? How? Was it an explosion?" Midoriya started mumbling to himself. Uraraka could always tell when the wheels were starting to turn in his head. Since he was part of international security, he was probably thinking worst case scenario.

Thankfully Tsyuu was able to keep him grounded. "Was it a gas leak? Or something caught on fire?" Leave it to Tsyuu to keep the situation grounded.

"They're still looking into it," Ochaco admitted. "When I left with Shinso, he was saying they hadn't figured out the source yet."

"They couldn't figure out why an entire building exploded?" Todoroki looked skeptical, and if Uraraka wasn't busy being preoccupied thinking about other stuff, she would be too. She'd been working with the department for over a year as a fire-fighter and longer in training. In every fire, they at least had some sort of clue by the first glance. When Uraraka didn't answer, Todoroki tried to catch Midoriya's gaze, but he was too caught up in his own thoughts. Instead he returned his gaze to Bakugou. He narrowed his eyes as if he knew exactly what had happened and who was to blame. This unnerved Bakugou. There was no way this pitiful human really knew what happened.

"A-Anyway, my names Izuku Midoriya. It's nice to meet you." The second male, just a bit shorter with green hair and sun dots on his face, held out his hand with a smile. Bakugou raised an eyebrow at him as if to ask what he was doing. When he didn't take his hand Izuku immediately pulled away, blushing sheepishly. "This is Tsyuu. She's my partner." Bakugou tilted his head, looking confused. "Er…My lover?" Unfortunately, this seemed to confuse Bakugou just as much.

Lover? What was that? Why on earth would anyone need ah…ah. Bakugou was able to understand when the human-Izuku- put a protective arm around the other human. Bakugou had been taught enough about biology in his upbringing to understand that type of protective stance. A mate. That Bakugou could understand. Another person in order to create a collaborative relationship. Did humans have those connections in order to combine forces and gain power as well? Perhaps it was for repopulation, in order to continue their lineage onto the world. Either way, it didn't matter to Bakugou. He had no desire to continue his lineage, and he was strong enough so that alliances were nothing but a potential risk.

"I'm Todoroki Shouto," The third human held out his hand, a firm determination in his gaze. "You can call me Todoroki."

Todoroki… Bakugou couldn't remember why, but the name sent a flicker of rage through him. Instead of taking his offer, Bakugou pushed his hand away from him. "You don't call me anything, half-and-half." Todoroki raised an eyebrow, though Uraraka huffed beside him.

"His name is Todoroki, not half-half."

Bakugou scowled again. "I don't care."

"Nice person you have living with you," Tsyuu commented. Uraraka couldn't help but agree.

"What did you say?" Bakugou snarled, making the others jump back. For a moment it almost seemed like his hands were glowing. The satisfaction of startling all of them seemed to calm him down. Bakugou shoved his hands into his pockets and turned his back to them. "This is stupid. I'm not going to waste my time getting to know you. I'm going to work."

They all stared as Bakugou pushed past them and headed to the door. Uraraka was so stunned it took her a moment to register what he said. "Ah, wait! Where are you going?"

"Outside!" Bakugou snapped back.

Well that was vague. "For what?"

"To work!" She opened her mouth to continue her questioning, but the door slammed behind him so hard the entire building shook. Her friends all looked at each other while Uraraka inwardly groaned. It was going to be a long few weeks.

…

* * *

After a lovely dinner without Bakugou, Todoroki needed to head out first. He said it was because he had planned to meet with Momo and discuss a few things, but Uraraka noticed him sending a glare the way Bakugou had left. She hoped he hadn't offended him too much. Eventually it started to get dark and Tsyuu and Midoriya agreed they had to head out to. Mostly Tsyuu, since she had a meeting with the other teachers the next day. While they were engaged, they still lived in separate apartments, but Midoriya was the only one with a car.

"Ah, before I forget." Midoriya turned back to Uraraka from the doorframe. "Tomorrow's a PA day at the schools. Do you think you could take care of Eri for a bit? I can pick her up after work."

Eri was the girl Midoriya often looked after. She belonged to his friend Mirio and Tamaki, who adopted her a few years ago. Since both had jobs with somewhat unpredictable hours, Midoriya often took care of her. He was busy working with government a lot, but his hours were straightforward and he could take care of her after school. Besides, Tsyuu already worked at the school Eri went to, so she was with her anyway. With Tsyuu's conference and Midoriya's job, they wouldn't be able to tomorrow.

Uraraka mentally checked over her schedule. "Yeah, that should be fine! As long as you can pick her up before my next shift. I start at 6."

Izuku beamed. "Great! Well Uraraka, it's good to see you again." Tsyuu, who had already started heading over to the car, didn't hear Midoriya as he leaned over to whisper. "Good luck with your…house guest."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"GAHHHH!" Midoriya practically jumped five feet in the air. Bakugou had mysteriously appeared behind Midoriya the second he started talking about him. Uraraka was almost positive he hadn't been there seconds before.

Despite that, she had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing. "C-come on Midoriya, he doesn't bite," she giggled.

"YES HE DO! YES HE DO!" Midoryia insisted, turning a few shades lighter. Oh please. How was a member of their national security division such a scardey cat sometimes? Bakugou glowered at the human as he rushed off after saying goodbye to Uraraka again. He began to rethink that the human term for 'lover' meant connection for power. This 'Izuku' was certainly not powerful. Uraraka continued to wave until both of them disappeared.

When it was silence again, Uraraka turned on Bakugou with a huff. "Bakugou, seriously! You're my guest here, be nicer to my friends!" Bakugou stared at the human in disbelief. Was she really insisting he give a crap about…humans? No chance.

"No F ##$%g way. The weakling was annoying and useless." Bakugou turned back to the house, planning to go search for the food he had smelled. He was shocked when Uraraka rushed around him and forced him to face her.

"NO, he is my best friend and he's extremely smart, strong and especially kind." His human really needed to learn just who was in charge. Kind? Who cared about something like that?

 _No one taught him how to be good or showed him any kindness or mercy. If he were to learn a different way of life, he could be different._

Dang it. Why was he thinking about Aizawa now?

If Uraraka had the chance, she would have persisted. Fortunately she was very tired after the long day. With a sigh, she decided that the battle could wait for another day. "Just…don't insult them like that. Todoroki is only Todoroki, and Midoriya is a great person." Shaking her head, she walked past Bakugou, leaving him stunned. He was ready for a battle. Where did it go? "What were you working on anyways?" Uraraka called behind her as she went to the back windows. Immediately her mouth dropped open.

There was a large, wooden ground, flat and in the shape of a circle, in her backyard. She was positive it had not been there that morning, yet the craftsmanship said it shook have taken days to make. "Where…how did you do that?" Bakugou raised an eyebrow at her as if she was losing her mind.

"I made it. Obviously." Maybe she really was losing her mind. That thing was huge! Fine polished too! Her dad had built their house so she knew how long something like that would take to make. If it weren't for the few trees that were only stumps now, she'd deny Bakugou's claim completely. Well he may not have been the nicest guy in the world, but he certainly was a hard worker.

Too much…too tired. Long day. Ochaco shook her head, deciding that it was tomorrow's problem. "Okay. You know…I've got to get some sleep. Hey, how about tomorrow we go shopping to get you some stuff, okay? Eri loves shopping." She would have to apologize to Mirio for letting his daughter get close to Bakugou later. Hopefully she didn't pick up on his language. "I've got the day off at the fire department, but I'm working the bar at night. So we'll have to go shopping in the morning, okay?"

Bakugou understood only a few things that the human said. One, that she was tired. Two that they wanted to do something tomorrow. Three, she wasn't starting a fire at a department? And four, she was working somewhere. That cleared up nothing except for the fact that he was doing something the next day. He didn't want to bother. It was a waste of time.

"There's no way I'm going to waste my time,"

"If you don't come I'm going to be picking out all your clothes, hygiene tools and necessities for the next few weeks." Uraraka tilted her head to the side, examining him. "Pink would be a great colour on you."

"PINK?"

…What was pink again?

Uraraka giggled as Bakugou fumed silently. Perhaps the next few weeks weren't going to be that bad.


	7. Babysitting and Shopping

Babysitting and Shopping

 **Just as a heads up, I won't be able to post for a few days. Enjoy!**

"What's that?"

"It's a shoe store."

"What's that?"

"A coffee shop."

"What's that?"

"A baby Bakugou!"

"What the F #k is that?"

"A puppy Bakugou, oh my gosh!"

Forget new to the country. Bakugou had to be some kind of…of alien or something! As Uraraka took Eri and Bakugou shopping, Uraraka realized she missed the few hours where Bakugou didn't talk at all. They strolled through the mall and his voice echoed above even the radio singing 'firework.' Eri seemed to watch Bakugou in curiosity and amazement as he tugged on Uraraka's hand. Uraraka silently prayed that she didn't play to close attention to him. She already was busy avoiding the staring strangers, she didn't want to have to avoid Mirio later too.

That morning Ochaco had managed to pay that month's due early. Partly to get Monomo off her back after his visit, partly because she wanted the house paid off as soon as possible as well. His warning from before had certainly stuck with her. Since anything left either went to continuing to pay off the house or into savings for fixing the house in the future, that didn't leave Uraraka much spending money. Luckily the insurance company gave enough to spend on Bakugou and Eri was satisfied with the cone of ice-cream they got on the way there. As long as Bakugou didn't want a suit made of gold, they should be fine.

That is, if they didn't get kicked out of the mall.

"What the f#$k is that guy do-hey! Round faced human, get your hands off me!" Frustrated, Uraraka barely managed to drag Bakugou into a general store before security came after them. Bakugou yanked his arm back with more force than Uraraka thought necessary. "What did you do that for?"

"Bakugou!" Uraraka started, barely managing to keep her voice down. "You need to keep it down! Everyone is staring at you!"

Her guest scoffed. "What do I care about what these humans think?" he snarled, though truthfully it worried him. The only reason he was there was to blend in. Humans may not have been a problem, but he needed information on how they worked if he was going to either conquer the planet or just get the heck off the planet. The second option was looking much better.

Glancing back, Bakugou quickly realized this was the wrong answer. "Well I do care, and if we get kicked out of the mall because you are bothering everyone else then you will have no clothes for the month. You'll have to survive with that one shirt and that one pair of pants with nothing else. And I, personally, do not want you wearing the same smelly shirt around my house for a month. So you are going to be quiet or so help me, I will buy a roll of duct tape and close your mouth for you! Understand?" Bakugou had no experience in the military, but he had a feeling that if he were to face off with a general, it would be similar to that. Uraraka's face held such determination that even Bakugou blinked twice before responded. And when he did, his voice was noticeably a few octaves lower than before.

"Tsh. Only because I want you to stop nagging me." He didn't make eye contact, but that was enough for Uraraka. Satisfied, Uraraka put on a smiling face again and grabbed Eri and Bakugou's hands, whisking them away happily. Any onlookers there would see a young women skipping happily through the mall, an angry annoyed man that trudged along behind her, and an innocent looking little girl watching them both as if she was watching a play. May as well have been holding a bag of popcorn.

Once they were at the clothing section, Uraraka put Eri at a bench close to them so she could play with her colouring book while Uraraka went with Bakugou to find clothes. "Right. So, let's pick out some clothes first. We'll need to get you some cheap t-shirts so that you have a lot to wear. If we get a bunch they may be cheaper."

Her guest snarled at that. "I don't want any cheap s #t!"

Ochaco just frowned at him. At least she'd started to get used to his attitude. Really, once she got past it, it wasn't that hard to deal with him. "The insurance company didn't give you that much money that you can spend it freely. You need to save it for emergencies and spend it wisely!"

"Huh?"

Was money a foreign concept to him to? "Never mind," She waved the comments away. "Just- go sit with Eri. Make sure not to lose sight of her. I'll get you some clothes." Before he could retort, Uraraka spun around to send him what must have been the most venomous look he had seen on any human, alien, or creature in general. "And do NOT swear in front of her."

Bakugou hated being ordered around. He did not take orders from anyone. However, if it was something he wanted to do to begin with…Whatever. "I'm only going because you're boring," He grumbled while trudging away. Uraraka wondered how he could make such an immature comment before going back to the clothes. What was he, ten?

Eri, the smaller human, glanced up as Bakugou took a seat next to her. Sure he didn't like sitting still, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't a little curious about the small human. Most likely a younger one, for while he knew humans came in all shapes and sizes, he noticed this one seemed underdeveloped and lacked the same number of professional skills the other humans he'd met had. When he'd first met the child he hadn't understood why it was their responsibility to look after her and he'd asked his human if the child belonged to her. That had been the first time he discovered that humans could turn a shade of red as well as their natural colour.

Out of the corner of his eye Bakugou made sure to keep an eye on Uraraka and what she was doing. He didn't want her messing up such a simple task and making him pay for it, and he especially didn't want to lose sight of his human guide. He'd started to get some of the basics of human interactions (he thought) but he hadn't learned much about their military power, physical capabilities, ext. He was going to have to run some tests on her later…It took him a moment to realize the small human was staring at him. Glancing down, he met her wide eyes as she blinked at him, emotions unreadable. "What?"

"You're a strange person," she commented bluntly.

"What?" He'd raised his voice louder than he'd meant to. Almost instantly Uraraka swirled around and fixed him with a glare that could make mountains quiver on the spot. In a lower voice he added, "Shows what you know, brat. I'm way stronger and smarter than all of you humans put together." Eri tilted her head to the side, confused when he said all humans. Her dads told her that everyone was smart, but with different things. Perhaps it was one of those things she'd only understand when she got older.

Deciding the topic of conversation was boring, Eri went back to her drawing as she spoke to the adult. "How do you know Uraraka?"

"She's my guide."

Eri paused her drawing to look up at him. "For what?"

"Earth."

Again, she didn't understand, but assumed it was some kind of adult way of talking. "I don't think Uraraka's been everywhere on earth."

Bakugou snorted. How weak could you be to not even travel through one planet? "Not important. I just need to figure out how earth works in order to take over it in the future." Eri wasn't sure about that last part, but she understood wanting to know how the world worked. It made her feel a little bad for him.

In an effort to help, she gave him some information she thought might help. "I think everyone likes Uraraka." He didn't want to admit it, but that was useful information.

"Why?"

"Because she's nice," Eri answered simply.

…What.

"How does that give her any power?" Bakugou retorted. Eri moved away from her crayons for a moment to think about this with the most capacity a child could.

"I guess…people like her because she's so nice. They want to be around her. They respect her." People who thought she was nice obviously hadn't seen that face she'd made at Bakugou just now. What was with all the people around him speaking about 'kindness' and 'mercy' as if they were nectars of life? None of it was real. The kindness Bakugou had experienced always had a hidden motive. A stronger body in exchange for servitude. Food in exchange for work. Encouragement in exchange for missions. There was no such thing as real kindness. It was all just a ploy for selfish intentions. He bet that if he could figure out what Uraraka's intentions were, she'd be just as bad as everyone else. Humans must have been able to put up more of a façade than others. Nothing more.

"People respect people with power," Bakugou answered. "Anything else is a lie." Others seemed to glare at Bakugou when he said that, but Bakugou thought they were the ones with the problems. Everyone was evil. At least he was honest enough to admit that.

"Maybe," Eri mused, a little confused. "But Uraraka doesn't hurt people. She's a firefighter, and firefighters are strong. She can deal with lots of stuff. She helps out my parents and Izuku a lot. And she buys me ice-cream," The child said happily. "I don't know about respect or power, but I think she's strong and I like her." Bakugou said nothing. None of what she just said made Bakugou think any differently. She even proved that Uraraka didn't have power. Anything that she did which didn't give her power was weakness. Eri seemed to pause and look at Bakugou as he thought this. "I bet Uraraka would like you better if you were nicer."

The thought was so out there Bakugou's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. "What do I care about what she thinks?"

Eri blinked, obviously just as confused as he was. "You've been staring at her a lot. Doesn't that mean you like her?"

The idea was so ludicrous that Bakugou covered his mouth to hold back a laugh. Him, showing any interest in some weak, measly human? "All I care about is that she makes sure I'm not spotted in this planet and that I can use her information for my own purposes." He snickered to himself, acutely aware of the human that continued to stare at him. "What?"

"Well," Eri began, tapping her crayon on the paper as if she was about to give the advice of the century. "Daddy says that when a boy is mean to me at school, that means he likes me but doesn't know how to show it yet. Maybe you just don't know you like her yet?" Bakugou was certain that the human they had picked up had to be a malfunctioning one. Almost as bad as the human he already had.

"You're crazy brat," he scoffed.

"Just so you know, daddy says not knowing is not a good excuse to hurt someone! You've still got to figure it out and no matter what, hurting people is wrong." Eri nodded, confident in her own words. Bakugou couldn't help the leering smile that grew on his face. Hurt? Oh he was going to do a whole lot more than just hurt these people. "Look here." Bakugou turned back to the human again to see her flip through the papers and pull out a very rough outline of him. It was filled almost to the top with the red wax the girl called a crayon. On the side were two sentences. Badness= 90%. Goodness=10%. "You yell at people a lot and are really mean. Your badness level is really high, when it should be down to 40% at the most." Bakugou wondered just what qualifications this human had in order to make these assessments. "And see," She flipped the paper again, next coming to a much nicer outline of Uraraka. Only the legs were filled with red, with the sentences saying 'badness= 30%. Goodness=70%.' "Uraraka's got much more goodness than you. You could learn from her." Ha! Like he ever needed to learn anything from that miniscule,

"Oh, or Izuku! He's got a goodness level of 90%!"

* * *

Uraraka never got a complete explanation as to how the display stand next to Eri and Bakugou was destroyed. All she knew was that Eri and Bakugou had rushed over to her as she'd picked out 7 shirts for Bakugou to try on then she had to force them to stop dragging her out so she could actually buy the clothes.

By the end of the day they'd managed to get enough clothes and hygiene tools to last Bakugou a while. She'd hoped to get him more personalized stuff, but Bakugou laughed at the idea of wanting to keep anything. Kind of annoying, but at least that meant she could buy cheaper stuff, (as long as she didn't tell him.). They dropped Eri off at Izuku's place later, though for some reason Bakugou looked even angrier every second. Eri seemed alright however, and Uraraka silently prayed that she didn't catch anything Bakugou had. She didn't want to risk his rudeness being contagious.

"Okay," Uraraka exhaled after they'd gotten to the bus-stop. "I need to head over to the bar before my shift starts." Bakugou remembered her mentioning a 'bar' but he hadn't heard her explain it.

"Where?" Uraraka assumed he wanted to know what bar she worked at.

"Oh, it's the Twenties Evening bar downtown. I've never seen you there, so I'm not sure if you've been before…" Bakugou still looked confused, so Uraraka tried to guess at his questions again. "Is it that I'm a firefighter? Yeah, I've got to keep up two jobs to buy the house. But it's worth it!" She exclaimed with glee. "I'm gonna keep the house my parents raised me in, no matter what!" Bakugou didn't understand the excitement behind her words. She really idealized that weak, fragile building, didn't she? Her determination at least caused Bakugou's opinion of her to rise a few notches. After the wave of happiness passed, Uraraka blinked up at him. "So, what about you? Do you need a key to the house?"

Bakugou finally realized what was going on. She was giving him free reign. Perfect. The first chance he had to survey the area and search for more parts. The building she had only had a few pieces of machinery that he could use. Without a word, Bakugou spun around and headed off, leaving Uraraka standing at the bus stop very confused. "So…is that a no?"

"It's none of your business where I'm going round-face!" Bakugou yelled back, annoyed she interrupted his planning.

Behind him, Uraraka puffed her cheeks out. "Touchy." A little louder she called, "Alright, just be careful! Get bad before midnight if you can!" Bakugou just huffed back at her, but Uraraka didn't mind. Instead she went back to waiting for the bus stop…and pausing. "Round face?"

* * *

"Look man, we don't want any trouble here."

Bakugou sneered down at the human. "That's your problem."

"Dude, we just wanted to go for a ride!"

A group of teenagers hadn't expected to be stopped when they were disturbing people around them by being loud at the park and scaring off kids. Unfortunately for them this happened to be the park Bakugou was passing through. He was allowed to be as loud as he wanted. But the disgusting looking humans who looked like they had less brain cells than a fish swimming in circles? Bakugou had some rage he wanted to deal with anyway.

And those metal contraptions they had been riding on were perfect for his ship's motor.

One particular human who seemed either braver or stupider than the rest jumped in front of Bakugou. "Who do you think you are? You want a piece?" He tried to puff out his chest and appear bigger than he was. Bakugou recognized this and almost doubled over laughing. This caused the human to go red with rage. "Something funny ya freak?" Freak. Now that was a name Bakugou was familiar with.

Instantly he sobered. The foolish human doubled backwards as Bakugou straightened to his full height, nearly two feet over the annoying human. His friends all jumped back, the fear in their eyes so plain that Bakugou couldn't help but smirk with satisfaction. The first one tried to recollect himself. "You wanna fight? I'll take you on! You aren't that special." Not that special? Bakugou sneered.

The human flinched when Bakugou reached out with one hand, placing it just in front of his chest. At first there was nothing, and the teenager thought he could relax. Big mistake.

"DIE!"

Faster than the human eye could see, Bakugou pushed the human in the chest and sent him flying. The teenagers all gasped and shrieked in surprise. During the panic, Bakugou grabbed one of the bikes of the teenagers. "Oh gosh!' "What just happened?" "Sasuke? Are you okay?" Bakugou laughed. That definitely was the best way for him to let off the rage that had been building in him for the last few days. Seeing these little humans panic? Priceless.

In the panic, Bakugou jumped over to the bikes. Effortlessly he yanked the wheels off of the bikes, collecting at least 8 of them before rushing off. None of the teenagers noticed until it was too late, and Bakugou quickly escaped back to the house without anyone even getting his name.

Not even five minutes after Bakugou had disappeared, a cop car drove up to the park. The officer stepped out and when the teenagers saw him, they rushed over. "Oh man, you've got to help us. This-This guy just attacked us out of nowhere. He hurt one of our friends and ran away…" They went on and on, not letting the cop get a word in edgewise. "He was real tall, with messy blonde hair and these freaky eyes…"

"Red eyes? Grid tattoos on his arms? Didn't talk much?"

One of the teenagers brightened. "Yeah! Yeah, that's him! Did someone already call him in?"

The officer, Tokoyami narrowed his eyes at the teens. "I came here because I got a call that a group of teenagers were causing a disturbance in the neighborhood." Immediately, they all deflated. Tokoyami on the other hand frowned, surveying the area Bakugou had apparently been present in. There was a large dent in the ground from where Sasuke had landed from his hit. Thankfully the boy was breathing, but the damage to the ground made it look like there was a bowling ball that hit him, not another man. That, and the fact that the police had yet to find a person identifying as 'Katsuki Bakugou' in any files. Monomo, the one who worked with the apartment company, said there was no apartment under the name. According to all their files, Bakugou Katsuki had just appeared into the world yesterday. That wasn't enough to bring Bakugou in for questioning…it was only speculation…

But it was clear to the officer that this Bakugou character needed to be looked into.

Only after Tokoyami had left did the teens find the real damage. "Aw man! What happened to our bikes?"

* * *

"Another pint! Another pint!"

Ochaco grimaced. "Sir, that is definitely enough alcohol for you today. You're going to puke!"

It was a normal night at the bar Ochaco worked at. It was only a weekday, so luckily no one was drinking heavily. As Ochaco worked the bar however, one guy had come in looking particularly down on his luck. A sign Ochaco recognized as the person who would be trouble. "Hey hey hey, missy," He slurred his words, holding his glass up again. "I-Ugh-I say when I've had enough. Just poor me another glass doll face."

It was time for serious Ochaco to return. Her eyes narrowed, and she put her hands on her hips. "Do not call me doll face. And I have the right to refuse service if I think it's necessary." Indiscreetly, she nodded in the direction of security. One man started heading over to them, ready for business.

"Aw, come on!" The man stood from his stool and Ochaco was immediately on the defensive. "All I want is one more drink! One more drink lady! Is that so," he reached out putting a hand on her shoulder and made a grab for the pitcher. But Ochaco was faster. Before his hand reached, she caught his with her own. Twisting him around she pinned him onto the counter so fast the drunk man didn't even have the chance to fight back. "Ah! Geeze!" Others in the bar jumped in surprise. The security on the other hand only smiled at Ochaco before taking the man off her hands. "Gah! Let go! I'm going, I'm going!"

As the man was ushered outside, one man who frequented the bar let out a laugh. "It's always nice having a bartender who can put people in their place." Ochaco blushed a little bit at the praise. Gun head was one of her teachers from training, and he continued to visit her every once in a while. On nights like that-with customers like that- it was always nice having a friendly face. And if it was a lazy day they could easily just catch up.

The bell to the door opened, and Ochaco looked up to greet the customer. "Hi! Would you like any-" She cut herself off in surprise. "Todoroki?"

Her friend just nodded. "Yes. No drink for me." Of course not! Todoroki was against drinking, he wanted his mind to be focused all the time. That was why she was so confused he was at the bar at all. She'd never seen him come before except the time where she'd needed a ride and he came to pick her up. The man was still in his work clothes, black pants and dress shirt with the long jacket over top. His badge was still attached to his belt. He must have just gotten off of work. His feet moved from one to the other, showing how awkward he felt in the establishment.

"Um, hi Todoroki. It's good to see you, but…What are you doing here?" While the bar customers were usually there to free themselves of work, Todoroki's face was all business. After ensuring there was no one paying attention, he moved in so close to the counter he had to use one arm to balance himself.

"Bakugou Katsuki." Ochaco blinked. Of all the reasons Todoroki could be in the bar that was the last thing she had expected.

"Ah…Excuse me?"

"Bakugou Katsuki. He hasn't said where he's from? What he wants?" Uraraka just got more and more confused with the intensity in Shouto's eyes. What was so important?

"No…He's just staying at my place until he can recover…" Todoroki, obviously, did not like that answer.

With narrowed eyes he told her, "He's dangerous."

Uraraka was too surprised to even from. "I can take care of myself Todoroki. You know that." He'd seen her fight before. Heck, they used to go to the gym together.

But Todoroki did not waver. "I know. But he's different."

"Why?" Uraraka finally asked. "Do you know him?"

"No," he replied. "But I'm sure." After a pause he said, "Can you make him leave your house?"

That startled her more than anything he'd said. "What? Todoroki, the man lost his home! I'm more than able to take care of myself! Sure he's annoying, but I can handle that!" Todoroki frowned, but said nothing. "Goodness Todoroki, what's wrong? You don't know him but you certainly act like you do."

"I don't," Todoroki insisted again. "I just know his type." He seemed to pause for a moment before deciding it was a losing battle. Unsatisfied, he turned towards the doors once again. "Just be careful," Todoroki reminded her. "He's not a good person. And I doubt he ever will be."


	8. The Ship And The New Guy

A Ship and the New Guy

About a week had passed since Bakugou started living with Uraraka. And in that week he was just as much of a mystery as he had been the first day.

He had strange habits. Like how she had once found him sleeping on the roof and refusing to explain why. He never talked about any friends or family that he could contact, but he certainly thought of Todoroki and Midoriya as enemies. During the day he didn't have a job, and he only went out to go and walk around town. She didn't know what he did around town, but sometimes he came home with big pieces of metal. Whenever she was around, he either ignored her or asked her so many basic questions that if Uraraka didn't know that it was absolutely crazy she would have been sure he was from another planet. 'Who's in charge?' 'Of the country?' 'No, the world.' Take the conversation they had over lunch on Uraraka's day off.

"Why would the green-haired human ever subject herself to life with someone as weak and defenseless as Midoriya?" Truthfully, Uraraka couldn't figure out if he was really asking, or if he was just looking for another way to insult her best friend.

With a sign, Uraraka put down the pan she was make her eggs in. "Because she loves him. That's what being a lover means?"

"No," Bakugou started as if she was the idiot. "People get mates in order to get strong connections and carry on their lineage. Why the heck would she want to continue her legacy on with that fool?" Legacy? Mate? Just the term made her turn red. Where did he come from, the middle ages?

"No way! Things don't work like that Bakugou!" She insisted, even when Bakugou looked confused. "How do you not know what a lover is Bakugou? It's someone you love! Romantically?"

"Heh?" Uraraka couldn't believe she was even having that conversation. With someone her own age no less!

Actually… "Bakugou, how old are you?"

"In what context? Passing moons? Solar eclipses? Be more specific round-face!" Seriously, why did he have to keep up with that 'round face?' Couldn't he at least think up a better nickname? When she explained that she meant by years, he answered. "I'm 25 then." Ah. Older than her.

"And you've never been in love in 25 years?" In love? How was someone 'in' love? "Huh. I mean, most of the time things don't work out, but I'd have thought a lot of people would have fallen in love at least once before they turned 25." Talking about love gave Uraraka butterflies, bringing her back to feelings of giddiness and excitement. "You remember Jiro? She used to be in love with this one guy at our school. He was trying to be an electrician, I think. She and kaminari were so cute," Uraraka laughed, almost glowing when she remembered how happy her friend had been. "Things didn't work out in the end. They ended on good terms, but they just decided their relationship wasn't anything more than friendship." As the story ended, the glow around Uraraka faded as well. "Kind of sad…but Jiro seems really happy. And love is just a really powerful thing!" Bakugou didn't know why she went on to explain the story about someone he couldn't even be bothered to remember.

He was however curious when she seemed to go through a range of emotions just from the one story. Especially the ending, where even though it sounded sad, she came back as if there was triumph. And the mention of power? Were humans created to get stronger depending on a feeling? That would be interesting to know. If they were strong enough, he may be able to trick them into becoming his soldiers. They certainly weren't smart enough to outwit him or strong enough to beat him, but everyone needed henchmen.

That kind of theory was hard to test. He didn't recognize the signs of someone being 'in love.' "How can you tell?"

Uraraka seemed to return back to reality. "What?"

"How can you tell? When someone is in love?" Perhaps he could scout people out and study them for a while…

This plan seemed to be crushed when Uraraka shook her head. "It's different for everyone Bakugou. I mean, yeah sometimes it's easier to tell than others, but it really depends on the person! Love is complicated, so it's impossible to really pinpoint how it should look."

"Eh? How is one f #$%$g human emotion so complicated? That's stupid!" Uraraka, who had grown used to Bakugou's language and attitude, simply swirled one of the kitchen chairs around so she could sit with him.

"Bakugou, you were talking about lovers as if it was all just for power, but being in love isn't like that! Love is…" She paused, trying to come up with the words. Darn, she'd never really done to well in English. "It's like, finding one person in the whole world. No, the whole galaxy, who makes you feel good and like you matter. Romantic love is when there's another person that you know you can live your life without them, but you don't want to. When that person's needs come before your own, and all you can think of is what can make them happy because when they are happy, you are happy. Being in love is finding a person who makes you feel like the most important person in the world. A person that no matter what, you would do anything for." She paused, allowing the feelings to all rush over her in a happy wave. When she looked up at Bakugou again, he was startled to find her beaming. "Because you're in love. And no matter how much it may hurt or how hard it is, love is powerful."

Love. Powerful? No. No. None of what she'd just said made sense. Sacrificing what you wanted for someone else's needs? Wanting to be with just one person? All that crap about happiness? None of it made sense. It must be made up. No one does anything for anyone else except because it might benefit them. Love must have been a term human's used to avoid the truth.

"That all sounds like a load of crap," Bakugou determined. Uraraka just hummed, ignoring Bakugou entirely.

"That's just because you haven't been in love," she mused.

Bakugou snarled, angry at her insistence. "Have you?" he threw back.

To his surprise his human started turning red. She let out a little laugh and covered her cheeks with both hands. "W-well, ah…when we were kids, I may have had a thing for Midoriya." Had a thing for? As if reading his mind, Uraraka explained. "I was in love with Midoriya."

"WHAT?"

"Oh come on Mr. grumpy pants! But I know, it's so embarrassing. High school sweethearts, the girl in love with her best friend." No. No. Why was she talking like this? Why was his human getting…giddy talking about that weak human? "I mean, he's such a nice person, you know? And he's always willing to help others…and he's so determined…" What was she even doing? What was she saying? He didn't want his guide anywhere near that human, much less looking so joyful when singing his praises. If anyone, she should be singing his praises! He was the far superior being! "I mean, I really was head over heels…Thought about our future together and everything! When we would hang out, I used to think about how it was kinda like a date…" Shut up. Why was she happy? What was causing her to act like this over such a pathetic human? How come he made her feel so…good? What was even making her feel good?

"But, you know…he was always so busy with wanting to become a member of national security. And I totally respected that! But I just didn't want that to be…my life you know? And I wanted to be a firefighter so bad, but our lives just couldn't mix with that. So eventually, I forced myself to get over it. We're best friends now! I'm so over that! I'm just really glad that I got the experience. It didn't last long but…being in love feels really good."

No. Bakugou didn't want to hear about it anymore. He didn't care to hear about love, he didn't care what it was. If it made her talk about that freckled weirdo like he was a hero sent form above, then he wanted no part in it. Without another word Bakugou practically launched himself out of his chair, startling Uraraka. "I'm going back to work," he practically growled before stomping to the back doors. He didn't want to have to listen to his guide droning on about such a weakling.

It appeared his suffering for the day was not over. "Oh yeah, your project!" She jumped out of her seat and went rushing to Bakugou's side. "Wait up, I wanna see how it's going!"

"Why the heck should I show you my ship?"

That make Uraraka pause. Was he building a boat? Well they were pretty close to the ocean…"Because I just shared something about my life! Now it's your turn!" He'd never made that agreement! Where was the contract? Who was the witness?

Unfortunately Bakugou was completely helpless to stop the excited human as she skipped around him and out the back doors. Uraraka felt a little guilty that she hadn't come to check out his project since that first day. She'd been really busy, but she should pay attention to what was going on in her friend's lives. …They were friends, right?

When she went outside, she expected to see the wooden disk like thing that had been there the first day. Instead she found herself gaping at the large, metal bowl shaped contraption on top of the disk. It was a large bottom made of all the metal scraps that he'd put found in the last few days. A number of bike wheels were attached to the edge with metal pieces sticking out of them, making them look like they were giant fans or propellers to push through the water. "Wow…" she gaped openly. Bakugou's pride went up a few notches when he saw the human's awe. Not that he cared of course. "I mean…I'm not sure that would float to well in water, but wow…" Water? Float? There was no gravity in space, how could he ever fall? Uraraka circled the large metal contraption, coming around to see that the front was left open, incomplete. There was what looked like a big desk with numerous pieces of metal and wires poking out of it. "Wow. What's this supposed to be?"

"The control desk," Bakugou huffed. "Isn't it obvious?" Obvious he says…

"Well this all looks really cool!" Uraraka exclaimed while she pulled herself up next to the ship. "You're going to have to show me this thing again when it's done." He had to do no such thing! "This is certainly really fancy for a boat. How did you…" Uraraka's voice slowly trailed off, catching Bakugou's attention. Normally she would be able to go on and on without any hesitation. He was beginning to wonder if he'd broke her when she started again. "…My record player."

"Eh?" She didn't respond right away. Her eyes were glued to a corner of the desk, filled with wires and some of the more complicated pieces of technology that he'd found. Somethings human's had called macs, iPod, microwaves….

"My record player," she repeated. Then, slowly, she turned on Bakugou, and he could see that there was a fire of anger. "My father's record player."

It took Bakugou a minute to realize what she was talking about. He'd almost forgotten how a day ago he'd taken the music playing contraption from that room full of books upstairs. It had the parts he'd needed in order to make a sonar to track other ships. Currently it was on his table, pieces torn out of it and meshed with the other pieces of technology he'd gathered. The only real recognizable part of it was the box that contained it all, and the speaker piece that was currently underneath the table, ready to be used later.

"Oh," Bakugou commented. "I needed it."

"You…" Uraraka stuttered, the sound different than when she stuttered out of confusion. "You needed my dad's record player."

He was beginning to get concerned that something was wrong with his human. Why was she repeating the obvious? "What's wrong with you?"

It wasn't until after she'd spun around and turned on him that Bakugou wondered if his question had been a mistake. There was a fire-an enormous fire behind her eyes that could have rivaled Bakugou's own flames. "What's wrong with me? You took my dad's record player! That meant a lot to me! You just took it, and tore it apart for parts and now it can't be fixed! That was my dad's favourite record player, he used to collect records all the time! We'd listen to the music at dinner and-did you even think about asking me?"

She was screaming. Her face was red, but not out of the embarrassment he'd come to recognize. Fists clenched, teeth gnashing together, Bakugou was wondering if he should be preparing himself for a battle. "No," he answered honestly. Big mistake.

"No!" She screeched. If there were other human's around, Bakugou was sure they would have heard her. "No! You just took it without even asking. Do you even think about how others feel? Did you consider at all that I would be angry at this?"

Immediately Bakugou went into an offensive position. He dropped lower, widening his stance and putting his arms up. It was about time he saw his human's true nature. Instinctively his tail twitched, but he kept it still just in case. He still needed her as a guide. Whether she was a willing guide or not it didn't matter, but it would be troublesome if she managed to find someone who recognized him. Uraraka didn't notice, busy ranting and trying to hold back her anger.

"That was one of my dad's favourite things! He'd be crushed if he saw it now! Now it's gone, just like he's gone and…" Uraraka panted, slowly losing the spark that had caused her to ignite. Instead of anger, a wave of hurt and pain crashed through her. "He's gone…And so is another piece of my memory of him." She sniffled, surprised when a tear trickled down her cheek. With her hand she wiped it away, turning so Bakugou couldn't see it. Bakugou didn't understand, but it appeared like the human was in pain. Why? He hadn't touched her yet. Her breathing was shaky as the anger faded.

It was fine, she tried to tell herself. It…it would be fine. Her dad would have been okay. He'd have said that it was just an old record player. Man-made items weren't made to last forever. It was gone, but the house was still there. As long as she didn't lose the house, she'd be okay. After taking a few deep breaths she was able to calm herself down. But the anger didn't go away in general. She was just able to control it again.

Spinning around, she turned to face Bakugou. He had been watching her, confused, but when she turned to face him he immediately tensed up. Slowly, she dropped down from the ship and walked over to him. Each step was agonizingly slow, and Bakugou wished she would just attack so he could counter. Should he attack first? If he did he doubted she would survive-

"Look." She pointed one finger at him, making him tense. "I know you don't seem to care about anyone else but yourself, but you're my guest! This is my house! Never-never do something like this again! If you do I swear you are out of my house!" He blinked, confused.

"What-why should I care about something like that?" Apparently that was also the wrong thing to say.

That anger flared up again for a moment. "You selfish- gah! What is wrong with you! How can anyone be so self-centered and prideful! You- you're just one guy! You are no better than anyone! You're worse than most people, you know! At least most people know common decency to ask before they take other people's stuff!" Bakugou wanted to disagree with that. But he was so stunned by the situation, he couldn't even form the words he needed to retort. Why? Usually it was so easy to snap back at her. At any human. How was the anger of this…this extra enough to make him pause?

When he didn't say anything, Uraraka wondered if she'd gone too far. Unfortunately, she was still too angry to take back her words. Instead she huffed, turning away so that she could stomp back to the house. Just as she wrenched the door open, she stopped. "Remember this Bakugou," She called back at him. "People cannot live without others in their lives. If you can't figure that out, then you'll be stuck for the rest of your life." Then, with that, she slammed the door shut behind her. Leaving Bakugou there, stunned, with nothing to do but ponder her words.

…All he was sure of was that this meant he couldn't use the oven anymore either.

* * *

It took Uraraka an hour of convincing for Jiro to finally agree not to come over and pulverize her 'guest.'

After Uraraka had calmed down a bit, she'd called Jiro to rant. When Jiro got the jist of what had happened she was furious. That record player meant a lot to Uraraka. Who did that guy think he was to just…tear it up like that? For some kind of project that he was building in her backyard? She had half a mind to go find that police officer Tokoyami and tell him to go lock the guy up. Or even contact Todoroki and ask him to look into the guy. She knew from talking to Momo that Todoroki had certainly been tense after meeting him. It wouldn't take much convincing on her part to get him to go and kick him out of Ochaco's house.

Only Ochaco's words were able to convince her to let it go. Uraraka was strong, and she knew what she could handle. Jiro was sure of that after training with her and working together for years. If Ochaco could handle him, she could handle him. But in her opinion, the guy didn't deserve the number of chances Ochaco would likely give him. She told her as much this after they finally ended the phone conversation and Jiro was returned to her current daily life.

It was Jiro's day off as well. She'd met with Momo at her lunch break when she'd got the call. Before Uraraka, Jiro had been helping Momo figure out her situation with Todoroki. They were…well, to everyone else in the world, it was obvious they should be dating. But Momo was constantly worried about if he really liked her or not. Which was stupid. Jiro knew that any guy would be crazy not to like her. Unfortunately the only way Jiro knew Todoroki was through friends, so she couldn't really go to him. Maybe she could message Midoriya, see if he would be able to get through to him.

Specifically that evening though, she'd been talking about how worried she was. Her being a lawyer and him being a detective meant their jobs crossed a lot. She often would take on cases that he had been working on anyway. But over the last week… "He's been so tense lately," Momo explained. "I mean, he's normally very stoic, but lately he just… He seems so preoccupied. I've tried asking him about it but he says not to worry about it." Sadly, she had stared down into her soup. "It's hard not to though…"

Jiro hadn't been able to say anything before Uraraka called and Momo had to head back to work. But Jiro had promised to help her deal with it later. Now, with both conversations currently on pause, Jiro was heading back to her apartment alone. Other than her lunch with Momo, she didn't have any current plans. Maybe she'd call Kaminari later and see if he wanted to play video games online. That is, if he wasn't busy with boyfriend that day. Actually, he'd better be busy with him. Jiro had been his wing-woman for weeks when the fool had tried to get the attention of that over jacked tetsu tetsu guy. (That HAD to be a fake name). When they got married, Jiro called dibs on being the best man.

The reminder of all that she had done for her friends was both a joy…and a bit of a sad prick at the back of her head. Lately it seemed like her life was centered on her friend's lives. Momo's not so secret crush on Todoroki, Uraraka dealing with this crazy guest and trying to keep her house, Shinsou trying to get higher in the department and sometimes even Midoriya coming to ask about different music bands that Tsyuu liked. Heck, she'd even helped her ex-boyfriend new best friend find his current boyfriend. She was happy with all her friends lives sure, but it got her thinking a bit. They were all working to make their lives better or just getting ready for the next stage in her life. What was she doing?

As she walked through the streets, she pondered this question herself. She was fine with her job. It paid enough for all she needed, though would it always? Should she start looking into getting a side-job like Uraraka had? Maybe work at a record store or something fun. What about her future plans? She didn't want to leave the city, all her friends were there. Her love life? Ha! That was a good one. There was no one in her life that she was interested in. The last boyfriend she'd had was Kaminari, and they'd quickly decided they were better off as friends. Shinsou was pretty cool, but she wasn't sure she could live with someone that…dead to the world all the time. Should she be looking…?

Ugh. What was she supposed to do with her life? Shaking her head, Jiro decided she needed to get her mind off things. Instead of taking the right turn to her apartment building, she took a left turn towards her favourite music store. If she was lucky that album that she pre-ordered would be in already.

As always, the store was relatively sparse. Most people didn't come during the day unless it was a weekend. Perfect. Just like Jiro liked it. After nodding politely to the owner, she headed over to her favourite music section. She expected the area to be empty, but she was disappointed when she found three people standing in her favourite rock area. There was one man with long, dark hair, a big white scarf and scruffy looking black clothes. Another man was wearing all leather, had pointy blonde hair and big sunglasses. The third had spikey red hair and was wearing old jeans and a jacket. Quite the mismatched group in the music store. Either way, Jiro was just annoyed that they were taking up most of the space in the rock music section. Trying not to grumble she trudged over to look for a spot she could still see in.

While looking for the Shinedown band album, the three people mumbled to each other. "Mic…how does music affect our mission at all?"

"Now now Aizawa! How do you expect to understand people without knowing about their culture? Music speaks to the soul!" His companion let out a snort of derision. Jiro did her best not to eavesdrop as she tried to reach the albums on the shelf.

What was supposed to be her alone time however was interrupted when the red-headed one noticed her trying to reach. "Oh hey! I'll get that for you!" Before Jiro could protest he grabbed the album from the high shelf and handed it to her. He read over the cover before handing it to her. "Skillet? Good music?"

"Uh, yeah…" Jiro replied, surprised at the man's cheery expression. "I'd say so. Haven't you heard about them?"

"No," he answered honestly. "But the picture looks really cool." He leaned over to get a look at the cover in her hands.

"I really thought that everyone was knew about this band," Jiro commented, looking over the man skeptically. He was a little strange. His teeth were…oddly pointy. His hair was such a bright shade of red that it almost seemed to shine like flames at the tips. And he had a strange red belt that looked like it was similar to the one she'd seen Bakugou wearing with that weird costume he had. Maybe they got it at the same store. His eyes were very wide, and despite the warm weather he was wearing long jeans and a big jacket. When she scraped his skin, it felt rather hard. Maybe she'd just imagined that.

He tilted his head, seeming to debate this. "Really? I guess I'll need to listen to them." Jiro smiled hesitantly. She really wasn't sure how to talk to these overly friendly guys.

It appeared his friends weren't too happy about his attitude either. "We aren't supposed to be conversing," the scruffy one tried to say, but was elbowed in the chest by the other.

Jiro, not sure what to do, offered to help. "If you want I can recommend you some of their music. I have a few songs on my phone…" The stranger's smile widened, showing off his pointed teeth.

"Really? Awesome! That's really manly of you."

Manly? "I'm a girl," she told him. It wasn't the first time she'd had to remind people of that, with her short hair and somewhat boyish features. It was normal, but it still made her a little annoyed.

To her surprise, he just nodded quickly. "I know. But being manly is for everyone!" Uh, Jiro wondered if the guy needed to get a dictionary and figure out what that name really meant. To her surprise, he held out his hand for her to take. "My name is Kirishima. It's nice to meet you!"

* * *

Her words stuck with him. More than he thought they should have. All that stuff that she'd said about him- it shouldn't have matted. But it did. For some reason as he went through his day, what she'd said continued to run through his brain. For most of it, the specific words she said didn't matter as much, though they did stick. It was the way she said them. Anger. Hurt. And somehow-trying to hurt him. How come his chest felt tight? She hadn't hit him. Were human's capable of using their voices to damage the internal function of their victims?

The last thing she'd said really was caught in his mind. _If you can't figure that out, then you'll be stuck for the rest of your life._ What did that mean? Was he going to be stuck on the planet without this secret that was apparently so valuable? Did he need some form of human access code in order to leave earth's atmosphere? He was so focused on this he barely got any work done on the ship. Stupid, annoying human. Breaking his concentration. What did she know?

The earthen star had fallen by the time she finally came down the stairs. Bakugou heard her footsteps coming down the stairs, and every sound was like a drum getting closer. He was instantly on alert from the time he heard the door upstairs opening. When she finally got down the stairs he was so tense that the metal cutlery he had been using was frozen in his hand. She walked over to the table, slowly, and he did his best to appear like he didn't care. But even with his eyes focused in the distance, he was paying close attention to every sound that she made. At first there was silence, and Bakugou's pounding heart made him wish he'd never met this human in the first place.

After too much time had passed, the human finally spoke up again. "…Look, Bakugou…" he remained still. Instincts told him that it was better not to address the other unless he knew what they were doing. If it was a fight it would be easier and he'd just attack her before she'd get a word in edgewise. But this wasn't a battle…At least not with fists. It was hard to be impulsive in this situation. He didn't know how these were handled. "I…I don't apologize for yelling or getting mad. But a lot of what I said was uncalled for. I apologize for that."

…What? A…an apology? Why? What was she doing? What strategy was this? This didn't help her win, it was damaging her own pride. Why was she doing that? Suddenly he realized that she was waiting for an answer. "…Ok."

A small smile appeared. "Thank you. And...For the future, can you just…promise me that you won't take anything from my house without my permission again? Okay?" Initial instincts told him that he should have told her to shut up and that he could do what he wanted. But as soon as he turned his head to say this, he was caught by the look in her eyes. There was a strange…earnesty behind her eyes. A hopeful light that made Bakugou…stop. She wasn't forcing him to do anything. That wasn't…wasn't normal. Why…

"…Fine." The words came out of his mouth before he knew what he was saying. "I don't want anything else from this stupid place anyway." That was a lie. He'd needed the oven. But now that plan was…gone.

He didn't understand why he relaxed when she beamed happily. "Great! That's awesome!" Before Bakugou could really register what was going on, she had rushed over to him and wrapped her arms around him, squeezing tight. He immediately tensed, preparing for her to try and choke the oxygen out of his system. But when she squeezed it…it wasn't harsh. It was soft and warm. It was a feeling that he couldn't describe. He didn't have the words for it. But when she pulled away…He kind of wanted her to do it again.

"Come on! Let's do something fun!" Searching through the kitchen, she pulled Bakugou out of the chair. "Let's make something. I think I've got enough stuff to at least make something fun. You wanted to cook stuff before, right?" Bakugou, confused, followed her when she brought him to the counter and started pulling out materials. "I'll teach you! I bet you'll have lots of fun with it."

"What?" At first he was going to ask what she could possibly teach him that he didn't already know…but the first question that came out of his mouth wasn't that. "Why would you do that?" It was Uraraka's turn to pause. When she turned to stare at him again, he was shocked at the wide smile on her face.

"Because I want you to be happy silly! We're friends, aren't we?"

 **In case anyone asks, I am not the biggest fan of Ochaco/Izuku or Jiro/Kaminari, but I don't hate the ship or the shippers so while my stories likely won't have them I'm not going to hate on them either. I mentioned them since I wanted to give the characters some past experience with love, but I won't bash the relationships at all. (Unless you count Bakugou getting annoyed.) I seem to have an issue with shipping any main ships in this manga…**


	9. Getting Fired Up and Getting Fired

Getting fired up and Getting Fired

"Wow! You know, when I taught you how to cook, I never thought you'd be this good."

"Huh? Whatta ya mean? I can do anything!"

Uraraka giggled, deciding not to argue. It had only taken a few hours for Bakugou to understand how everything in the kitchen worked. It took him less than a week to become the best chef Uraraka had ever seen. She watched as Bakugou sliced through the veggies quicker than an automatic machine could. It was kind of creepy, how good he was with a knife. But, she tried not to think about that. Meal prep time was halved because of his skills! Once she'd even invited Midoriya over to see him cook.

Well, tried. As soon as Bakugou heard he was cooking for Midoriya he threw down his knives and went to work out back.

That night, at around five, Uraraka and Bakugou enjoyed yet another one of Bakugou's home cooked meals. She silently wished they had enough money to get him more stuff. Then the food would be even more awesome! Unfortunately, Uraraka didn't even have the time to enjoy it. "Gah. I've got to get ready to go. I start work in half an hour!"

Bakugou blinked up at his human as she pushed her food into one of those plastic boxes she had and into the fridge. For some reason, always around that time, she'd leave in a rush. That was fine with Bakugou. He didn't care where she went. Besides, she was gone in the mornings and during the day all the time so he hardly noticed except for those days when she was at home.

But the times she left at night…It wasn't that he cared that she was out. But when she got back, he could smell the difference on her. Whenever she returned from her night trips, he began cursing Overhaul for giving him a sensitive nose. There was the distinct smell of this…burning, harsh liquid. Almost like a deadly yet intoxicating smell at the same time. That itself was annoying enough to deal with. Then there was the other smells. He could smell, distinctly, a number of male scents around her. Majority were just close and annoying, but there were a few that seemed to close, as if they'd actually touched her. He remembered one day she came back in a bad mood with the small of a male covering her shoulder. The thought of some humans all over his human sent rage coursing through him. Who the heck did some measly humans think they were? What was Uraraka even doing to be around so many males? Her morning events made her come back with the smells of only friends he had met, but the one at night had humans getting far too close for his liking.

That bugged him. That bugged him a lot.

"Where are you going?" Uraraka paused packing her bag to look up at him. His voice was heavier than it normally was, which was odd, even for him.

"I'm going to work. At the bar?" She was sure she'd told him about that before. She had, but Bakugou hadn't paid attention then. Now the thoughts of many humans on her sent his heartrate into overdrive. He didn't know what a 'bar' was but he decided right away he didn't like it. It was frustrating that the human didn't seem to see this herself.

After quite a long pause, Bakugou stood up as well. "I'm coming to." Uraraka stared at him. He glared at her in response. "What?"

"Nothing! Just…You've never really showed interest in my work before." He grunted, giving no answer other than that. Uraraka decided to chalk it up to just another one of the mysteries that was Bakugou. "Alright. But you know I won't be able to talk to you much. I'm going to need to actually work."

"Don't care. Let's just go, Uraraka." Uraraka blew out her cheeks in annoyance. Well, at least he was coming. Maybe she could introduce him to Gunhead...On second thought, she wasn't sure she wanted Bakugou meeting her favourite teacher.

Before she turned back to her stuff, though, she paused. Had he just called her by her name?

* * *

Unfortunately, Gunhead was not there that night.

Uraraka sighed as she wiped the bar. Sure she'd guessed that he probably wouldn't be there that night. But she'd been hopeful. Since she was busy working, she'd hoped that Bakugou would have someone to keep him company. In the end, all that happened was Bakugou had to sit at the counter watching Uraraka while only taking breaks to glare at the customers that went up to her. Really, it wasn't that good for business.

Oddly enough he seemed to fit in there pretty well. No one could identify the tattoos on his arms, but they added to his rough demeanor. The scary face, permanent growl and sharp eyes kept everyone at a distance. It was kind of funny to watch from Uraraka's perspective. And hey, most of the creeps that sometimes came to the bar were too scared to go up to her that night. That was quite a relief. Even the security guard tried not to look his way!

After giving a group of friends their drinks, she headed over to the bar near Bakugou's stool. "Did you want a drink Bakugou? You've been just sitting here, staring at everyone all evening." Again, Bakugou said nothing. He continued to survey the setting with a cautious gaze, as if he was an undercover cop looking for a culprit. Uraraka wondered if that was the reason people were avoiding making eye contact with him. He'd be great in a good cop bad cop situation. "Bakugou?"

"This is lame," Bakugou finally answered. With a scowl, he looked up at her. "Nothing happens here. All you do is talk to humans and bring them drinks and food."

Again he had managed to confuse Uraraka. Did he say humans? "Well, yea. What did you think would happen?"

"I thought there would be a bunch of losers who'd get their f #$*%g faces punched in."

His voice was serious, but Uraraka couldn't help but laugh. "I-If you wanted a fight, you should have gone to a wrestling match! Really, not much happens here other than that?"

Bakugou slammed his hands down on the counter, startling her. "Then how come I always smell so many humans who have touched you?" A number of customers shivered at his yelling, either staring openly or trying to avoid looking altogether. Uraraka was the only one who actually paid attention to what he'd said, not his screaming. Smell like humans?

"Heeey, bartender!" Both Uraraka and Bakugou looked up at the third party that had joined. Uraraka groaned, recognizing this as the man who had caused problems for her a while ago. Bakugou recognized the foul stench as the human who had put his hand on Uraraka's shoulder when she came back in a bad mood. The memory made Bakugou's hair stand on end. The stranger didn't seem to notice Bakugou and walked right up to Uraraka, pushing himself right in her face. "You-you really look nice, you know?" His voice was slurred and he had an awful smell about him. Bakugou scrunched his nose up in disgust.

Uraraka's nose twitched, but she was able to forcibly keep her expression under control. "Sir, you've had _too_ much to drink. Again," she added, under her breath. Drink? Curiously, Bakugou sniffed the pitcher Uraraka left on the counter. He could smell a faint mixture of something he had not found in Uraraka's house. Ah, so the drink Uraraka served was some form of inhibitor. It dulled the human senses. Was this place a human ploy in order to trap people and make them do their bidding? If that was so, Bakugou had to admit he was impressed. Uraraka was more devious than he thought.

…She hadn't been trying to trick HIM during his stay at her house, had she?

While he debated this internal dilemma, the man let out a laugh that made even Bakugou think twice. "No I haven't! Aw, come on. I'm not asking for a drink, I'm just talking!" Bakugou's eyes narrowed at the man. Uraraka, so far, had been decent to everyone he'd seen her with. This man however…her arms were crossed in front of her chest and her face was barred off. Not a good guy.

"Fine. Then sit down."

"Don't sound so harsh!" he slurred his words, not noticing as Ochaco placed the tray on the counter cautiously as she tried to keep some distance between them. "I, I just want to get to know you." Bakugou already didn't like this guy. He smelled, he talked like an idiot, and more than that, there was a dark look in his eyes that said he clearly didn't want to get to know her. It wasn't a look Bakugou particularly recognized, but he knew malicious intent when he saw it.

Apparently Uraraka was able to see it too. "Well I'm afraid I'm working right now. And I live up the mountain, so I can't say I'd be able to spend time with you." Bakugou's approval rating of Uraraka went up a few notches. She was able to hold her ground without even stumbling against this man. Nice.

"Eh? Up the mountain, oh sweetheart." His voice changed as if he was pitying her. Looking down on her. The thought made Bakugou fume. She obviously was the superior of the two, how dare he look down on her! "It's can't be nice having such a pretty girl up in that big house all alone, huh? Must be scary~." He winked, reaching out and tucking her hair behind her ear. Uraraka recoiled in shock, but Bakugou had seen enough. If she wasn't going to fight him, then Bakugou needed to teach this loser a lesson.

Not even a second passed before Bakugou was up on his feet, between Uraraka and the stranger. "She's not alone," Bakugou interjected. The man looked so stunned he stumbled backwards. Though some of that might have been from the drink. Uraraka at first looked confused- then when she noticed the anger radiating out of him, started to feel dread. _Oh no-_

"Eh? Who are you supposed to be?" The man puffed up his chest, similar to the teenager Bakugou had fought a while ago. Was it a human attempt to frighten him? If it was, it was pathetic. Bakugou could clearly see that the man was in no condition to actually fight, and even if he was, Bakugou was certain it would take less than ten minutes to destroy him.

"The guy who's gonna kick you're a# if you don't go back to sitting on it," Bakugou answered with more bite than Uraraka thought necessary. He was just a drunk guy? Bakugou HAD to know what drunk guys looked like before. Maybe he was worried she couldn't stop him herself? It wasn't like Bakugou had really seen her fight before.

Gently Uraraka placed a hand on Bakugou's shoulder. Bakugou whirled around, startled by the sudden contact. Uraraka tried to reassure him with a look, but Bakugou refused to maintain the eye contact long. Normally she was able to calm him down when he got to mad! This was…well, exactly like him, but it was strange that he wasn't reacting to Uraraka. Seeing that nothing she did would calm Bakugou down, she turned back to the man. "Look, if you don't leave right now, I will call security again. If this becomes a common occurrence, then we have the right to ban you from this store." Bakugou tried not to pay attention, but he couldn't help feeling a sense of pride in the determination in his human's voice.

The man's confidence wavered at that. He was a frequent customer, and Uraraka doubted he wanted to change that. After a moment of debating, the man let out a grumble. "Fine. Whatever." Bakugou's fire began to fade when the man turned away, stumbling as he did. Uraraka let out a sigh of relief, thankful that there would be no problems that night.

Unfortunately thinking it seemed to jinx it.

"If you ever get tired of that weakling," The man called back. "Give me a shout. See what a real man is like."

Inwardly, Uraraka groaned. _Oh no._

"DIE!"

No one even saw Bakugou move. One second he was next to Uraraka about to sit down on the stool again. The next second, the stranger was lying in the middle of a broken table, splinters and pieces of wood scattered around him and Bakugou standing above him. He'd moved so fast that everyone gasped in surprise. There was even a faint mist, steam coming off of him. Uraraka stared, stunned. She didn't know he could move that fast. HOW could he move that fast?

The man in the destruction groaned. Uraraka snapped out of shock. When the feelings of surprise passed, fear coursed through her. "Oh my gosh! Bakugou, no!" Bakugou didn't seem to hear her. He did have a habit of never bending to what other people wanted. Unfortunately that was the time he needed to bend. Without even glancing at her, Bakugou grabbed the stranger by the cuff of his jacket. Effortlessly he lifted him into the air, making the man screech in terror.

"You want to see how a real man fights?" Bakugou hissed. Catching sight of him, Uraraka paused in surprise. His body was tense, but not from pure battle stamina. There was excitement. A thrill at being able to overpower this man, of being able to stand above him. The smile on his face made Uraraka's blood coil. People weren't supposed to look like that when hurting another human being. And his eyes…

For the most part, Uraraka had managed to ignore his red eyes. She'd assumed they were parts of his costume, coloured contacts that he didn't want to take out for some reason. But in that moment the red in his eyes was deeper, darker than she had ever seen it. And it was filled with satisfaction. At seeing another man tremble in his hands.

A question that had been considered before came to her mind again. But for the first time, she asked it to more than just herself. With wide eyes and a gaping mouth, she asked Bakugou. "…Who are you?"

Bakugou's head snapped around at the sound. It was the first time that Uraraka flinched, showing visible fear. Bakugou caught the movement. He saw, when he met her eyes, the fear that was there. Fear over him. Something he was used to. He'd seen that expression in many eyes before.

But none of them were Uraraka's brown eyes.

Bakugou stopped. His hands slackened on his hold on the man. His glee at finally being in battle again faded when he saw his human's fear. The smile faded, transforming into a look of confusion. She was afraid of him. That was clear. That was normal.

Why did he care?

For a moment the room was silent. Empty but for the gasping of the man who fell to the table. Neither Bakugou nor Uraraka paid attention to the man who stumbled to his feet while they stared at each other, a silent war battling within both of them. Uraraka was frozen in fear, so unsure of the man who she had thought had become a friend, but at the moment wasn't sure anymore. Bakugou responded by locking onto her eyes with his own confusion. He wasn't sure what had changed to make him so mesmerized. It felt as if his heart was going to burst as he waited in…in fear…for her reaction. Was that fear? Bakugou wasn't sure he'd really felt that before. Every second that passed where she said nothing made the fear grow and grow. He was impatient. He wanted something.

"What? What are you," Bakugou didn't get the chance to finish his sentence. As he spoke, Uraraka caught something out of the corner of her eye. And it caused more fear than before.

"Bakugou, move!" In an instant Uraraka dove forward, catching the stranger who had tried lunging at him. Instinctively, Bakugou cursed. He was so mesmerized by Uraraka's expression that he hadn't paid attention to the movements around him. The stranger who had tried attacking him was caught off-guard by Uraraka coming to his defense. Before he could react Uraraka grabbed him by the arm, kicked her leg out to trip him, and then slammed him into a booth. Cups and glass pitchers went flying, causing people to shriek and duck for cover. As soon as Uraraka had done it, she jumped back. The man tried to get up again, waving one hand out to try and get at least one hit in.

But Bakugou was alert again. Grabbing Uraraka he yanked her out of the man's reach, then using his free hand, shoved the man in the back so hard he went flying through the window in front of the booth. The glass shattered, and the man was thrown outside into the cold, leaving nothing but a stunned silence behind him.

While the customers all rushed around, trying to get out of the building our just away from the damage, Uraraka silently tried to replay what had just happened. She had been afraid of Bakugou. For a moment, she was truly terrified of who he could be. And she wanted his answer. She wanted him to answer who he was. But he hadn't gotten the chance…because she had defended him.

She was afraid. Afraid of him. Of what he hadn't told her about himself. But that didn't change that somehow…they were friends. One broken table couldn't change that. When she turned to look at him, who stared back at her just as stunned as she was, she couldn't help the small smile. "We…Made a pretty good team there!"

Bakugou on the other hand was stunned. She could fight? Well, her movements were slow and sloppy, but apparently it was much better than the other human. The idea of his human being capable of attacking was…not an unpleasant thought. He was startled by her suggestion of teamwork. He'd done all the heavy lifting. But, in the corner of his mind, he acknowledged that she had helped to. How seamlessly they'd been able to move together brought a confusing smile to his face.

Their moment together was shattered by screaming from behind them. "What on earth happened?" Uraraka spun around and her heart stopped beating. It was her manager, coming out after hearing all the noise to see part of his bar in pieces. With her and Bakugou standing in the wreckage.

"S-Sir!" She rushed over to him, ignoring the annoyed expression on Bakugou's face when she ignored him. "I…There was this man, and he,"

That happened to be the perfect-or worst- time for said stranger to throw himself through the doors. If nothing else, the man was quite persistent. "That," He gasped, surprisingly with only a few scrapes and bruises. "Those two attacked me!" Bakugou hissed, wondering why the human wasn't dead yet. He stumbled in fear, but Uraraka rushed back to try and calm Bakugou down again. The boss watched this exchange, confusion still plain on his face. Of course he recognized the man, he'd caused many problems in the past before. But the stranger with Uraraka, he did not recognize. And the damage around the bar was way too much for that man to have done.

Uraraka quickly tried jumping to Bakugou's defense. "Bakugou was only trying to help me, I promise, he,"

"He's with you?" Her manager looked over Bakugou. He took in the tattoos, the dark angry expression and the muscular build that would have made anyone run in fear. The other man may have been annoying, but it only took the manager one snap judgement to decide who was really at fault for the destruction.

Uraraka hesitated while Bakugou studied her curiously. Why was she hesitating? Why was she even explaining herself to this human? "I…yes, but,"

"And you attacked him to."

"Sir, he was drunk!" Ochaco told him desperately.

"That doesn't mean you can attack people Uraraka! You know this!" Not able to attack people? Bakugou found this line the most confusing thing he had heard that evening.

"I know, and I am so sorry." She wanted to say she had a good justification, but she didn't. Bakugou had attacked the man with far too much force, and Uraraka had joined in. Even if she was defending Bakugou, they both used far too much force for the situation, and a drunk man couldn't have done that much to them in the first place. She knew that there was no way she could explain their case to him to make him forgive and forget.

There was a pause as the man-continuing to protest- was taken away, again, by the security guards. People took the chance to duck out, leaving the business closed off from any money for the night. He would definitely be banned from coming again. But the problem wasn't just the noise disturbance. No, the manger only had one thought on his mind. "Uraraka, you- Do you know how much this damage is going to cost?"

"I-I'm so sorry. I'll find a way to fix it, I promise,"

"Uraraka." The manager stopped her. His voice was grave. Both of them knew that Uraraka couldn't fix what she'd broken. She didn't have enough money to pay for it. So there was only one real choice for him to make. There was regret of course. But as the owner, he had to make the important decisions. "I think that…we're done here." There was silence for a moment, then he added, "You are done here."

Uraraka thought her heart stopped. "W-what? No! Sir, I-"

"Don't make this any harder than it has to be Uraraka." He interrupted.

"…Yes sir."

After a pause he added, "I won't put it on your record. I'll just say you quit. That way it should be easier to find another job." Uraraka said nothing. The manager realized this, and with a heavy sigh, placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Again she said nothing. As the manager walked away, she said nothing. When Bakugou came up behind her, she said nothing. When Bakugou spoke up, she said nothing. "That b#$%$%d should have been taught a lesson a long time ago." Again, Uraraka said nothing. Bakugou noticed this, catching the shaking of her arms and quiver of her lip. "What? What's wrong with you?" Again, she said nothing. Instead she quietly went behind the bar and grabbed her things. Without one word to Bakugou or anyone else, she headed out the door. Bakugou was confused, but there was a stinging feeling in her heart that he was part of the reason she wasn't speaking again. He didn't know how. He'd just fought a bad guy. Heck that had to be the only good thing he'd ever done in his life! But Uraraka still wasn't looking at him. Even as they left the building, Uraraka didn't look up. Eventually even Bakugou ran out of complaints to give and stuff to yell at. They fell into a silence that Uraraka didn't notice, but Bakugou found extremely uncomfortable.

After some time passed, Bakugou's voice was quieter when he spoke again. "…If you were more agile on your feet, you'd be able to catch them quicker Uraraka." Uraraka. Her name again. It may have meant nothing. But in Bakugou language, it could have also meant everything.

That, if nothing else, allowed her to show a small smile. "Thanks' Bakugou."

* * *

Uraraka went straight to her room when they got back. This didn't make sense to Bakugou. He was certain he'd gotten her nighttime schedule down, but it was far too early for her to retire to sleep. He hoped that the one attack hadn't drained her of all her energy. That would have just been pathetic. And he was starting to be happy with the idea that his human wasn't as pathetic as he originally expected her to be.

Maybe it was what that man had said. Something about her being done. He didn't understand all that they had said, but it had sounded as if she was being lectured. Which was idiotic. She and he should have been praised for what they did, putting that weakling in his place. That weakling who had apparently put his hands on her before…The reminder made his blood boil. If she wasn't going back to that place, Bakugou was thrilled. He wouldn't have to worry about other humans touching her anymore.

But she had been upset about it. He didn't understand why, but it was the only logical reason he could think of. Somehow their actions had gotten her in trouble, she was no longer able to return to that place, and she was upset about it. Bakugou of course didn't care…but he didn't want her trudging around the house for who knew how long. Why did she care so much about that place?

Could it be…She liked it when that man came to talk to her? No- No, she had tensed up and gotten angry when he got closer. Bakugou knew the idea was ludicrous, but once he thought it he couldn't get it out of his mind. That-that fool? How dare that weakling even think of getting close to her! Stupid women. If he weren't getting information, he would have her begging for him. She would be staring in awe of Bakugou's power and she would never question him again. It would be him that she was sad to not see again, not that fool!

Frustrated, Bakugou couldn't even think of going back to work on his ship. Annoying round-face. What made her think she could distract him from his work by just…being? It was infuriating! Automatically he found himself stomping up to her room nearly an hour after she had retired to confront her about this. Maybe this was some kind of curse that she'd place on him. A way to make him only think about her when he ought to be working. Truly diabolical.

His footsteps only stopped right before he'd reached her door. The idea seemed to leave him as he realized just where he was. Her room…she'd specifically blocked him off from this area…Who knew just what it was that she had been trying to hide form him. Something important? Something valuable? He didn't even remember what she'd said to him before to she'd told him not to go in. Back then he hadn't care one bit. But she spent so much time in that room…

Carefully, he leaned against the door to listen in. All that he could hear was the soft sound of her breathing. Sleeping. Once he was sure he carefully pulled her door open, then slipped inside while closing the door behind him.

It was a good thing for him that he could see in the dark. The room was far less interesting than his imagination had believed it would be. She had a small bed next to a large window showing the plains of grass and the distant forest next to her house. There was a closet and drawers for clothes, though most of them were scattered across the floor. Bakugou knew she didn't own many clothes from the number of times he'd seen her wearing the same thing. Her purse was on a large desk in the corner, next to a door that led to the bathroom. The walls were covered in stars, planets and meteors that danced across space. Huh. So she was curious about the world outside of her own then? If she was lucky, he may show her it all someday. After he conquered her planet and potentially enslaved her entire civilization.

As Uraraka snored, Bakugou caught sight of a number of pictures next to her head. Curious, he went over to the wall above her to get a better look. There was one of a younger version of Uraraka, shorter hair and even rounder cheeks, with a scrawny looking Midoriya. Bakugou hated the way she looked at him in the photo, cheeks a bright red as he waved at the camera. If he didn't want to wake her up he would have burned the photo and thrown it into space. There was another with her and the short-haired women that would visit sometimes, both wearing the uniforms Bakugou had seen her in when they first met.

A number of other photos graced her walls. But the one in the middle caught her eye.

It was a younger version of Uraraka. Much, much younger. She was as small as the human Eri they had met. She was wearing a sweater that was obviously too big for her, eyes closed while she laughed. But the two older humans next to her caught Bakugou's attention. Two adults, one with Uraraka's brown hair and the other with her pink cheeks. They must have been the parents that Uraraka seemed to care so much about. There were other photos with Uraraka older that had the same couple in them. They must have passed recently, no longer than two years ago. In the photo, she certainly looked happy. And her parents were just as overjoyed to see her.

Bakugou…He'd had parents like this at one point, hadn't he? Well, they were different than the people in Uraraka's photo. He remembered his mother was a fighter, strong, loud and powerful. His father had been quiet, a soft side to his mother's harshness. They worked as a team. Bakugou remembered being proud who his parents were.

…He hadn't thought of them in years.

Uraraka shifted in her sleep. Bakugou turned to see her hair splayed out across the pillow while her mouth hung open and arms splayed out like a star on her front. Even in her sleep her cheeks retained the light shade of pink that they always did. He studied the woman in the bed- only truly relaxed while in the comfort of her dreams. During the day she was smiles, talking constantly, and always running around. But never relaxed. Never able to sit still. Always running for fear of something going wrong. But the photos with her smiles showed it was worth it. That for her, the stupid, messed up house was worth it because of the smiles her parents had given her. That doing meaningless chores for those weaklings she called friends was worth it because of the smiles they shared. And even falling in love with an idiot- if only temporarily, was worth it for that smile.

He wanted that smile. He wanted her smile of joy, to be completely relaxed, not running from something that may go wrong. Not just when she was smiling for her friends or for her work or the house or over stupid Midoriya. He wanted the same smile she had in all those photos…but he wanted the smile to be for him.

A knocking on the door downstairs snapped Bakugou out of his thoughts. Uraraka groaned in her sleep, turning over to try and distance herself from the sound. Again the knock sounded, and Bakugou hissed at the direction it came from. How dare the stranger disturb his human's sleep? There was a yawn, and Bakugou panicked when Uraraka almost work. Working quickly Bakugou yanked her blanket and wrapped it around her, using the warmth in the blanket to lull her to sleep. For a second, it looked like she would wake up. Then, slowly, she returned back to the dream state she had been in before. Bakugou sighed in relief.

But the knock outside continued. Bakugou's eyes snapped to the doorway. There would be hell to pay…

After shoving whatever materials he could around Uraraka's door to cancel out the noise, Bakugou stormed down the stairs. The knocking had become a persistent banging that was nearly matched by Bakugou as he stomped through the hall to the door. Without bothering to check who it was Bakugou grabbed the door and threw it open so hard it crashed into the wall next to it. "WHAT THE F\\#$K DO YOU WANT A$$%(%*#E?"

A small sniveling looking human stood in the doorway, with an arrogance behind that shock that made Bakugou instantly hate him. He'd already decided the man was trash when he'd knocked on the door, and so far he wasn't doing anything to change his mind. With pale blue eyes and even paler blond hair, he took a few seconds to calm himself. A few seconds to long in Bakugou's opinion. "Well? Spit it out! I ain't got all day!"

"You are rude!" the man replied bluntly, angering Bakugou even more. The stranger tried moving around Bakugou to see into the house. "Where is Uraraka? I am here to talk to her." ANOTHER human male? This one coming to visit her? Oh no, that was not happening.

"Who wants to know?" Bakugou retorted. The man scowled again at Bakugou's attitude, but gave the answer anyway.

"I'm Monomo," he replied, straightening his suit as he did. "And you are?"

"None of your business," he shot back. "What the h #l do you want?"

"I'm here to speak to-"

"That's not happening," Bakugou insisted, making sure to take up as much space of the doorway as he could. Part of him just wanted to slug this man and send him flying. But considering how his attack had backfired on him before with Uraraka, he decided he needed to know more about this human before he did that. Then he could CRUSH him. "What do you want? Tell me or get out of here."

Monomo looked affronted. "I don't have any business with you! I'm here to speak to Uraraka about this month's debt!" Debt? What was he talking about? "The payment for the house next month is coming in soon. If she doesn't pay in time…." He continued to talk, but his voice faded out as Bakugou stopped paying attention. Ah, the house. She'd mentioned something about that, hadn't she? How she needed to pay off some money each month until the house was hers? It sounded stupid, the house should have belonged to hers by right. Why did she have to pay more? And…had he just said it is coming up? As in, it wasn't due?

"If she doesn't have to pay yet, why the heck are you here?" Apparently Bakugou had interrupted him, because Monomo looked even more annoyed than before.

"BECAUSE she needs to know that if she doesn't pay it off, the house is mine!" Bakugou stopped him there. The house was his. The house that seemed to mean a lot to Uraraka would belong to him if she didn't pay up in time. And he was pressuring her to remember it before the actual deadline. A battle technique to throw off the enemy's concentration.

Finally, Bakugou understood something.

THIS human. Whatever he was doing was one of the causes for his human's stress.

Poor Monomo had no warning. "Listen here you baka," Bakugou snarled, body getting dangerously hot as he charged his arms with explosives. He knew he couldn't transform- if this man really had some power over Uraraka, he couldn't risk her paying for it if Bakugou attacked. But he could scare the man all he wanted. "This house belongs to Uraraka," he declared, his body heating up and steaming as he did. Bakugou had immense satisfaction in the sight of Monomo's eyes widening in fear. "This house will always belong to Uraraka. She'll get that money to you whenever she sees fit. And you're not going to do anything about it. You know why?"

Monomo stood, frozen in the spot as he started at the man who had suddenly appeared to grow three inches and became so hot there was steam pouring off of him. But it was his imagination, right? That had to be his imagination! "W-why?" With a flick of his tail Bakugou pushed Monomo to his feet. Monomo fell back, stunned beyond belief. How…he hadn't pushed him, had he? No, his arms were nowhere near him!

With a slam Bakugou braced his arms against the doorframe. Monomo jumped to his feet, making Bakugou's leer double in size. Had his mouth just gotten bigger? And his teeth…pointier? "Because if you come here and try to pull s#$t like this again," he threatened, voice low and deep to send chills up Monomo's spine. "I will tear out those smug looking eyes, crush them beneath my feet then hang you by your toes from my ship as I launch myself out of the atmosphere. Are we clear?"

Crystal.

Monomo was off Uraraka's property in seconds. Bakugou made sure to watch the man as he drove away, not taking his eyes off of him until he disappeared. Then he reformed his ear enhancers to listen in upstairs. Luckily, it appeared that Uraraka had managed to sleep through the noise they had made. Bakugou couldn't help but sigh in relief. Then he allowed himself the satisfaction of a grin.

Now Uraraka had even more reasons to smile.


	10. Time to Work

Time to work

Jiro twirled the loose ends of her sweater, humming silently to herself. It wasn't a sweet, melodic tune that most people preferred to hum. No, it was the melody of a pop song, a dance one in particular. Normally Jiro wasn't a big fan of that kind of music…but it was the song that he danced with her.

When the realization hit her she slapped her cheeks. _Oh no, not me too…_

"Jiro? Jiro!" Jiro gasped, slamming her locker shut to spun around and find Ochaco standing there. She blinked at her, confused and looking worried. "Are you alright? I just called your name five times now!" Jiro felt her face getting heated. Oh no. This was bad.

"I-ah, I'm fine!" Her hands moved so quickly to try and gather her things. "Just- you know, thinking about stuff?" The question mark behind her own statement made it that much less believable. Uraraka raised one eyebrow, obviously skeptical. Jiro sighed, banging her forehead against the lockers. A few of their coworkers gave her odd looks like she was crazy, and to be honest, Jiro wasn't so sure she could convince them that they were wrong. "My mind has just been…preoccupied lately."

"With what?" Ochaco asked innocently. Jiro groaned, wishing she didn't have to say it out loud.

"…There's this guy…."

"WHAT? Really?" It was Ochaco's turn to get started at like she was going insane while Jiro did all she could to hush her. "Really?" Uraraka whispered, the concern in her voice replaced with excitement. Jiro was sure that her cheeks were bright red.

Jiro earnestly did all she could to calm her friend down. "Sh, sh! Don't get ahead of yourself, it's really nothing like that right now!" Uraraka calmed down, but there was so much excitement in her face that Jiro knew she had to give an explanation now. "O-Okay, so…I met this guy at the music shop a while ago. He and I started talking, and it was really easy to talk to him, you know? I usually don't like talking to strangers but he was so…easy to talk to."

"A while ago?" Uraraka interrupted. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"B-Because I didn't know if there was anything to say!" Jiro whispered. "Just-let me finish the whole story. We were talking, and I offered to show him some good bands if we were able to meet up again- stop smiling- and he agreed. Since then we've been meeting, er, almost every day now. Just last night he wanted to try a karaoke bar and I got the song stuck in my head. But…yeah, t-things have been going pretty good." Jiro couldn't help but smile and turn a little red at the memories. They were just innocent hangouts, walking around town and going to her apartment to play video games but...It was the most fun she'd had in a long time.

"I thought you seemed a bit lighter on your feet lately!" Uraraka squealed. "Jiro! That's so sweet!" Her friend rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, getting all flustered like only Jiro could. "Do you think he likes you? I mean, you're just hanging out right now, right? Not dating yet?"

"Yeah. I mean, he's a little strange to be honest. I like him, but I don't know if it's a good idea to date him right now." Uraraka tilted her head to the unspoken question, 'strange how?' "I don't know…I mean, he didn't give me his number, and we always go to my house to hang out." Jiro's happiness faded as she thought about that. "He's a pretty open guy but he doesn't tell me a lot…" Jiro suddenly went pale. "Oh gosh, you don't think he's married do you?"

"No! No, Jiro, there is no way!" Uraraka quickly shut that idea down. "There must be other reasons he'd do stuff like that. You've only known him for a bit, maybe that's just part of his personality. M-Maybe he doesn't have a phone." Jiro seemed to muse over it a bit, but Uraraka could see in her eyes that it wasn't the first time the question had come to her. They had known a few awkward people in their lives but most of the time they could figure out reasons to why they were awkward. Like their friend Aoyama who worked at their favourite theatre, was pretty awkward because he didn't understand people well. Sometimes Jiro was awkward because she was so focused in her own thoughts she didn't really think about what she was doing until afterwards.

"I know, but…He is a little weird sometimes." Jiro sighed. She'd tried to ignore it, but once she was being asked, all the things she had tried to ignore came rushing back. "He asks the most obvious questions ever. Like, one time we were crossing the street and he asked me what the traffic lights are for."

Uraraka laughed incredulously, leaning against the lockers behind her. "Ha! That's weird!"

"Yeah! And once we went to grab coffee he was staring at the coffee machine like he wanted to take it apart and scrap it for parts or something!"

"Wow!" Uraraka laughed. "That…that sounds familiar…"

"Or this one time," Jiro joked, "We were walking by a park. He started getting so excited about the kids, calling them 'little humans' and all that. And it wasn't just them, he calls everyone 'humans.' Even me!" she laughed, able to relax more now that she'd been able to get it all out. It was good to have people she was able to just talk to things about! What she didn't realize was that while Jiro was now relaxed, Uraraka had frozen with an odd realization.

"…Bakugou."

"Huh?"

"Bakugou," Uraraka repeated. "That sounds exactly like Bakugou."

"What, really?"

"Yeah! He still asks me 'what a president is' and calls Midoriya 'that weak human' under his breath. I mean, your friend sounds like he's a lot friendlier, but those quirks sound exactly like the stuff that Bakugou does. All the time!"

"Huh." Jiro paused, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. "You know, Kirishima did mention that he came here traveling with a few friends of his. Maybe he and Bakugou are from the same place?" Uraraka had considered more than once that Bakugou was from a different country. But she'd never been able to get him to say yes or no to that. He always just said. 'I'm here now. What does it matter where I used to be?'

"Maybe, but that's got to be a strange place. Little humans?"

"Mm…Yeah, I guess so." Both women paused, puzzled over the two strange men in their lives.

Finally when their thoughts brought them nowhere, Uraraka turned the situation around with a big smile. "Either way, I'm so happy for you Jiro! I hope everything works out."

Jiro laughed, cheeks red once again. "Y-yeah thanks."

"Oh! If things go well with you, I can host a get-together at my house. He can meet everyone there!" After a pause she added, "Or if you want, just bring him over to meet me and Bakugou. If they really are from the same country, I'm sure Bakugou would love to meet him."

"Sounds good. I'll mention it to Kirishima. He seems like a friendly guy so…it might be good for me to prove that I have more friends other than just Kaminari and Momo." Momo had run into them one time when she was walking out of a bookstore and insisted by sending 20 odd texts to hear the whole story. Kaminari had resulted in the worst time they spent together. He and the Tetsu guy had come over, uninvited, to play video games with her when she had been hanging out with Kirishima. Tetsu ended up taking all of Kirishima's attention while Kaminai kept wiggling his eyebrows at her playfully. Then, afterwards, when Kaminari and Tetsu left, Jiro had to hide her phone from Kirishima when Kaminari sent a million texts asking who Kirishima was. What was worse Kirishima seemed to not know what a phone was and got super curious every time it lit up.

The two girls laughed, chatting away as they headed to the door. But when they did, Jiro realized Uraraka hadn't changed out of her uniform. "What's up? Aren't you done for the day?"

It was Uraraka's turn for her happiness to fade. "Ah, no, unfortunately I need to take some extra shifts." Immediately Jiro sobered.

Ochaco sighed. She'd lost her job at the bar a few days ago now, and the reminder had been weighing on her ever since. She needed to get another job soon, before the next deadline. If it took her any longer, she wouldn't be able to pay off in time. Luckily when she heard the situation, thirteen had been able to help Uraraka get a few extra shifts in the firehouse, but they weren't enough to pay off what was needed. Because of that, every spare minute Uraraka had was spent with her rushing around town trying to find a job. She hated it. Chasing want ads, getting ready for interviews, having to find an explanation as to why she had quit her last job…'well sir, my friend who I really don't know that well who is staying with me decided to beat up this drunk who had been bothering me and I helped, which caused a lot of damage to the bar. So, when do I start?'

She opted for instead saying that the bar was too far from her house.

"Oh man," Jiro frowned, remembering the story Uraraka had told her and Momo when they had come to visit. "I'm sorry. That's really…is there anything I can do?" Ochaco shrugged, the weight of the problem still burdening her thoughts. "I…I know you don't want to do it, but I'm sure that Yaoyorozu or Midoriya would be willing to loan you some money. They both have high paying jobs but they don't use a lot of the money, and since it's a time thing they both trust you enough to know you'll pay them back when you can." Uraraka nodded, but it was an option she didn't want to take. Yes she had considered it a…number of times. But she didn't want to become the person who relied on her friends for her wellbeing. Yet, sometimes it was necessary, but she didn't want it to get to that point.

"Thanks, but I really don't want it to come to that point. I'll…keep it in mind though. Thanks." Jiro smiled, but when Uraraka smiled back, they both knew it was fake

…

* * *

The metal bin full of old containers and papers was kicked to the ground without a care in the wold. Bakugou grumbled at the damage that he hoped would resolve some of his anger, but all it did was make the tension in his shoulders rise. He wanted to fight something. Or better yet, he wanted the source of his anger to go away.

Which, in a way, meant that the source actually had to be closer. For the past few human days Uraraka had barely spent any time at the house. In the morning she was always rushing out to that job she still had to do but in the afternoon she didn't get back till late, usually carrying papers that held facts about her and wearing clothes with bolder colours and harsher fabrics than the ones she normally wore. She would mumble stuff about job searching when Bakugou yelled at her, then barely managed to eat food before she fell asleep. He hadn't even told her about that annoying human's visit. He'd hoped that not knowing about it would calm her down. But still, every day she was working even harder than she had before.

Bakugou scowled. If she didn't have to go to that stupid 'bar' place anymore, didn't that mean she should be at her house more often? How come she was away even more now?

Since confronting her at the house didn't seem to be an option, Bakugou decided he'd find her in the city and confront her there. Despite taking a few walks through the city to see if he could catch her scent or hear her voice, there was no sign of her. He'd never been to the second place where she worked, so he had no idea how to look. While giving the metal can another kick before strolling away from it, Bakugou wondered if his day could get any worse.

"Bakugou!"

Of course it could.

There was no hiding the snarl behind Bakugou's face when the most annoying human in the entire world rushed over to him. "Ah, hi! I just saw you and thought I'd see how you were doing." Midoriya, or the weakling human as Bakugou liked to call him, smiled all friendly and such. "It's been a while. Everything going okay at the house?"

"That's none of your f##$$%g business Deku!" Bakugou snarled back. Midoriya blinked, not sure what Deku meant. Bakugou knew that if earth was connected to other planets then they would recognize it as a word for useless beings. But Midoriya remained blissfully ignorant. "What do you care to hear about what's going on in Uraraka and my life?"

"Well, she's my best friend for one thing," Midoriya responded. "And you're the person living with her." After taking a few cautious steps back Midoriya asked, "I hear she's been having trouble with money lately…" he sighed and looked down at the sidewalk. "I know she lost her job recently." A stab of something Bakugou couldn't recognize as guilt went through his heart. "She says she's okay, but I know that house means a lot to her. If she can't keep it for some reason…" He shook his head. "If it gets really bad, I hope she knows that she can come to me. I want to help her…"

He did not notice Bakugou's face filling with rage. His tail twitched, and he barely restrained himself from letting it reach out and stab the human in the chest. In part, Bakugou wasn't even sure WHY he hated him so much. There was just something about him that was…off. But the man was obviously 100% human. There was no question of that. But whenever the man was around Bakugou's nerves stood on end. And he hated that.

Bakugou already hated the fact that this human was opening up to him. Now, for some reason beyond his understanding, the human thought he was able to look after his human? Like that weakling even had the right to claim that he could take care of her? As if Bakugou couldn't keep watch over his own guard? The nerve of this weak little… "Oi, I can take care of her just fine!" Bakugou growled at him. Midoriya blinked up at him, surprised and confused altogether.

"Really? How?" When Bakugou said nothing Midoriya offered, "I'm sure she'd feel a lot better if she could find a way to pay for the house..."

"I can do that," Bakugou insisted.

"That would be great!" Midoriya exclaimed, smiling at the idea. Bakugou snarled. He hadn't wanted to make HIM smile. "I'm sure, if anyone, she'd be most comfortable with you helping her. Since you are living there anyway…" Midoriya started mumbling again, another trait that Bakugou decided he hated. "But…You don't have a job do you? I mean, Uraraka said you usually work on that ship at home." It infuriated Bakugou that Uraraka apparently told the weakling about his project. "Hey, I could help you get a job!" Midoriya sent Bakugou a smile that made him want to punch him. "I know just the place!"

….

* * *

"You're joking."

"Nope!"

"Midoriya," Todoroki hissed. "This is…not even possible."

Bakugou just wanted to know when it was okay to punch both of them in the face.

Midoriya had brought Bakugou to a large building swarming with many people wearing similar blue uniforms with gold badges. They'd run into the annoying Todoroki human and another female with hair sticking out from the back of her head. She had introduced herself as Yaoyorozu, but Bakugou didn't bother trying to remember the name. At the moment, Todoroki and Midoriya seemed to be engaged in a heated debate. "What exactly do you think you're going to do? He can't work as an officer!" Officer? No way was Bakugou becoming some kind of human cop.

"I know that!" Midoriya insisted. "But right now all we know about Bakugou is that he's really strong. He could easily work as a guard or security, maybe even as a first responder to dangerous situations." Bakugou didn't really understand what that meant, but working in dangerous situations was up Bakugou's alley. Another way to see what human's considered dangerous before he conquered them. To Bakugou Midoriya said, "That way you can get money to help Uraraka keep the house."

Yaoyorozu's eyes widened. She'd heard about the issue with Uraraka losing her job…But Bakugou was going to help? In secret? The thought made her wonder if Uraraka had been lying when she said Bakugou didn't know what sweet meant. Todoroki on the other hand stiffened, turning to stare at Bakugou in surprise. Was he serious? That was what…Bakugou on the other hand, turned to give Midoriya an odd look. "What's money?"

Bakugou didn't notice that unlike Uraraka, Midoriya showed no confusion at Bakugou's strange questions. "That's money, our currency. It can be used in exchange for goods and services. I'll make sure that they give it to you in cash so that you can spend it whenever you want." If it was what she needed to keep the house, then that was fine. Not bothering to explain to Momo, Midoriya headed towards the desk. "Wait here Bakugou. I know one of the agents here. I'll go talk to him, see what I can do." With a smile, Midoriya headed off, leaving Momo, Bakugou and Todoroki staring after him.

Well, only for a moment. "I'll be right back," Todoroki told Momo before hurrying after Midoriya. So then it was Momo and Bakugou left alone.

Momo awkwardly glanced up at Bakugou who glared after the two with clear annoyance on his face. "So…You are helping Uraraka keep her house?" Bakugou huffed, refusing to acknowledge her any more than that. "I'm sure she'll be very happy with that," Momo tried to assure him. "Especially since she's said you two have been having problems…"

"Eh?" Bakugou snarled at the human. "What's that supposed to mean?" Momo's hands immediately flew to her lips, only then realizing that perhaps it was something she shouldn't talk about. It was easy for her to keep track of legal secrets she needed to keep, but social secrets she mixed up often.

"J-Just that, well…Jiro told me about how you and Uraraka were…struggling with communication." That was the nicest way Yaoyorozu could put the fact that Bakugou had destroyed a memorable artifact without even asking Uraraka. "I know Uraraka didn't know what to do at first…but she hasn't said anything about that in a long time! I'm sure it was just nervousness with a new situation!" Bakugou said nothing. If he'd had this conversation with a human when their argument occurred, he wouldn't have raised an eyebrow. But at the moment, Bakugou felt his heart get heavy at the idea. His human was bothered by him? Why? He was greater than any human who could possibly be in her life! She ought to be thanking him for gracing her with his presence! But in reality…she was bothered? Fear, he was fine with before. Anger, he could have dealt with once. But now, just the idea that he was bothering her seemed to shake him to his core.

When Bakugou said nothing, Momo wondered if she should speak up. "Um…" She started, catching his attention again. He'd forgotten she was there. "You two aren't dating, are you?"

Bakugou blinked in confusion. "What's that mean?"

Momo recoiled, surprised. She'd been to many different countries, but in none of them did people not recognize what dating meant! Even if their culture did not participate in it, they usually understood it. "Dating? Romantically involved? Lovers?"

"Eh? Of course not. Why would I want that?" Uraraka could barely keep a house, how useful would she be in taking over the planet? From his definition of lovers being the contract between two people in order to gain strength, the idea of having a human lover seemed ridiculous. Sure, Uraraka seemed to be more powerful than a majority of humans, but that would do him nothing in universal conquest. Besides, she was…just a guide.

"Well if you like her,"

"What does like have to do with it?" Bakugou interrupted, visibly confused.

"How can you be lovers if you don't love one another?" Momo asked. The question caught him completely off-guard. Mostly because he had no idea what the connection between the two was.

"…What?"

"Like her. Don't you know what being lovers mean?" Bakugou said nothing. Momo didn't want to assume that he really didn't know, but it seemed like there was no other option. Maybe it was a language difference and he was simply confusing the word. "It means that you are in a romantic relationship with someone you are in love with." Someone you love? Bakugou remembered Uraraka explaining what being in was like. He had yet to understand how it made someone strong. But connecting the two terms made sense…Though it made even less sense why the previous human had been in love with the green-haired human then.

"Well, if you aren't lovers, then it's fine," Momo assured him. "I-I was just thinking that…well, if you were interested in her, that you were trying to do something nice to her so that she may like you." Oh. So this strategy would not only get her to stay at the house more often but also make her like him? Perfect.

Over at the police desk, Tokoyami had been extremely hesitant with Midoriya's request. "You do realize it takes years of schooling before someone can become a police officer, right?"

"I know," Midoriya nodded. "I'm not asking to make him a specific police officer. Just give him a job watching prisoners, taking some in, maybe those security jobs that people are called to for celebrities and politicians. He's strong enough to do it, and I think it would be beneficial for you guys." Tokoyami, again, was very hesitant. Not only was he especially suspicious of the man in general because of the case around the apartment building and people recognizing him around town, but because according to all the places he has looked, Bakugou didn't exist up to a few weeks ago.

However, Tokoyami owed Midoriya a huge favour when he was able to bring in the best detectives from around the world to help their city deal with a suspicious case in downtown and was able to get their town's police force a number of the latest gadgets and technology. He did not trust Bakugou, but he did trust Midoriya. They had only worked on a few cases together when Midoriya was still training, but he knew the man only acted when he was sure it was for the best. If this was the favour he wanted… "We don't have any of his files," Tokoyami told them skeptically.

"Oh, don't worry about that!" Midoriya insisted. "I'll bring them over."

Tokoyami frowned. "Why do you have them?"

"I don't. But, ah, Uraraka mentioned that she thought Bakugou may be international. If all his files and such were lost in the explosion, I can recover them at my work." Todoroki scowled, turning away from them in obvious frustration. Tokoyami raised an eyebrow, but Midoriya didn't pay attention.

"..That doesn't explain why we can't find any records of him on the computer," Tokoyami said.

"Old system?" Midoriya suggested. "Probably just a fluke. I was able to find stuff on him when I searched for him back at the station."

"Oh?" Tokoyami raised both eyebrows. Midoriya was a top member of national security. Of course he would have Bakugou's files. The situations around the stranger still nagged at Tokoyami though…"Could you send me those files? We can't find any of them, not even the apartment he used to live in. With the case…"

"Don't worry about that," Midoriya insisted. "I found those files long ago. He's rather unfriendly, but nothing suspicious about him. People probably didn't see him at the apartment because he stayed in his room all the time. His files should clear that all up in no time!" Midoriya's smile was as bright as the sun. But Tokoyami, a officer who had been working with the force for some time now, was able to see through the brightness. Midoriya was a kind soul who stood for justice and doing the right thing.

However, he was a terrible liar.

"Midoriya, may I speak to you for a second."

"Alright. But Tokoyami, about that…"

"I'll see if I can find something for him. Perhaps he can be a security guard for prisoners until we can get him some proper training." As Todoroki dragged him away, Tokoyami puzzled to himself. He didn't believe Midoriya. He knew he was hiding something. Was Bakugou under some kind of protective services situation? A witness to a case? Either way, it didn't clear the man's odd behaviour around town and his relation to the case. Sure, he'd find him a job at the police office.

It would give him the perfect opportunity to learn more about him.

Todoroki dragged Midoriya over to an unoccupied room and slammed the door behind him. Once he was sure they were not being eavesdropped on, Todoroki turned on him with an anger that few had seen in him. "Midoriya. This is a bad idea."

"What?" Midoriya countered, showing a confidence very few saw him with. "Trying to help the man living with my best friend? Indirectly helping her?" Todoroki hissed. How could he possibly explain the whole story to someone like Midoriya?

"Look at Bakugou. Does he look like someone who is really interested in helping Uraraka?"

"We can't always think like that," Midoriya insisted. "He may be good. You heard him, he doesn't even know what money is. All he wants to do is help Uraraka."

"Why? Why would he want to help her so suddenly?" Todoroki shook his head, frustrated that Midoriya wasn't seeing the bigger picture. "Midoriya, I'm a detective. I've seen cases like this where the unsub will do nice things for their victims before taking advantage of them when their guard is down. This could just be that step. And considering that Bakugou was found in the wreckage of an exploding building, I'd say that his trustworthiness is questionable." Midoriya said nothing. Todoroki wished he could read his smaller, green-haired friends mind to see what he was thinking. "…Midoriya, the man is dangerous. It is clear from the destruction he caused that the lives of others is clearly not on his mind."

"The destruction that he caused?" Midoriya interrupted. "So he's a terrorist now?" Todoroki said nothing. Midoriya took a step closer, trying to appear comforting to his friend. "Todoroki, I'm a member of National Security. You know what that means. I deal with terrorists and threats to the world all the time. I'll admit, Bakugou isn't trustworthy. But if we don't give him a chance, then what will happen? We'll be right. I'd rather be wrong in this situation. Maybe he really does care for her. If that's so, then I'd rather do what it takes to keep it that way than give Bakugou a reason to become what we are worried about."

"…Midoriya…"

Abruptly, Todoroki stopped. For a moment, Midoriya was confused. Then, a few seconds later, Midoriya understood. A few seconds after that, there was a knock on the door. Todoroki opened it slowly to see Tokoyami standing in the doorway, holding a few papers. "I was able to get Bakugou a position as a guard to our prisons. If you can get him to sign the documents and get his files in order, He can start working in two days."

Midoriya brightened. "Perfect! I'll go do that now!" Ignoring Todoroki's obvious glare, Midoriya slipped past him, thanking Tokoyami as he did. Midoriya returned to the area he had left Momo and Katsuki in, finding them deep in conversation. They both looked up at Midoriya's approach, though Bakugou's instantly soured when he saw who it was. Well, hopefully after he heard what news Midoriya had, that sour expression would go away.

Todoroki slowly followed, finding Bakugou and Midoriya deep in discussion. The half red-half white haired man narrowed his eyes at Bakugou, watching his reactions carefully. Todoroki had been taken off-guard when he found out why Bakugou wanted a job. The deep red eyes that Bakugou wore said he hadn't come just to play nice in Uraraka's home. He'd hoped she would listen to his warnings and kick Bakugou out. But now Bakugou was getting a job to help her? Had Todoroki been wrong about…No. No, Todoroki was sure…

"Todoroki?" Todoroki looked down at Momo, her face innocent and caring. It was enough to cool the fire in his system, if only a bit. "Are you alright?"

"…I'll be fine."

( **Yeah, for any kids who haven't got jobs yet that are reading this, getting a job usually doesn't work out this way. Stay in school everybody).**

 **So to anyone who is wondering, Jiro and Kirishima is a guilty pleasure ship of mine. I know it's not going to happen but I think its cute. I'm not a big fan of Kaminari and Jiro (Since apparently I am incapable of like the majority of ships I'm actually supposed to ship) but have nothing against it. Also the Tetsu-Tetsu Kaminari ship was one I saw on Tumblr and thought it could be funny, so I just threw it in. We'll see if I actually end up doing anything with them.**


	11. To Tell or Not to Tell

To Tell or Not to Tell

 **Btw, I'm not a fan of Monomo, but I really don't think he's this bad. I just needed a character to play the part, and he was the only one who wasn't a villain that would fit. If I did pick a villain, Uraraka would have more problems than just dealing with than just keeping her house.**

 **Also to the person who sent me the review about different perspectives a while ago, you are definitely right and I am trying to put it into consideration more. However since this story needs to be completed quickly since it has already taken longer than I expected it to, I will be aware but I can't do as much editing as I'd like. Also I write the chapters far in advance so by the time I read the suggestion I'd already written a lot and I don't have time to go back and change it. I'll try to keep it in mind, thank you very much for the advice, but I can't guarantee that the chapters won't have that since many were written beforehand.**

 **Thank you for the review though! They really encourage me to keep writing!**

Uraraka felt the blood drain out of her face. And she had been having such a nice morning.

Monomo stood in her doorway, a smug smile on his face. There was no way he knew about her losing her job. No way. Yet there he stood, the day that it was due, in her doorway with a big smile of triumph on his face.

It had been almost two weeks since she'd lost her job, but she hadn't managed to find another one. Even with the extra shifts at the fire station, she hadn't been able to save up enough money to pay that month's due. The night before she had calculated the money to find she was only a few hundred dollars off of the final amount. Though she hated the idea, she would have to go to Momo or Midoriya and ask for a loan. She knew they'd give it without question, but her heart sank at the idea. If nothing else…at least she was comforted knowing she had such good friends that she knew she could rely on in these situations. It was too late to call them by the time she came to the realization, so she had promised she'd go in the morning. That morning she had eaten breakfast with Bakugou after calling Momo and Midoriya.

They had both said they would come over as soon as they could…but neither seemed too worried. Normally Momo would be frantic thinking that Uraraka had sacrificed eating or taken money out of her savings to pay for the monthly debt, while Midoriya would be worried about his friend and would come over in a flash. Surprisingly when they answered the call, both seemed rather at peace. They'd said they would come over of course, but neither sounded like they were in a rush. Should Uraraka be worried? When she'd mentioned the issue to Bakugou that morning while eating, he had said nothing. Which was odd of him to. Usually he jumped at the chance to insult Midoriya. But he had been silent as Uraraka ranted on, only to be interrupted by the knocking on the door. Expecting one of her friends, Uraraka had jumped from her chair and rushed to the door. Only to find her heart shattered when she swung it open to find the last person she wanted to see.

With a lazy glance around the doorway, Monomo said, "you look surprised to see me. Were you expecting anyone else?"

"I…Well…" She couldn't very well tell him that her friends were coming with the money she needed, could she? Well, not that he would care where it came from as long as he got it. "What are you doing here? A reminder again?"

"No," Monomo frowned. "I'm here for the month's amount." He raised an eyebrow. "You do have it right?"

What? "I-I have till the end of the day!" Uraraka exclaimed, so loud she was sure Bakugou would hear her from the kitchen. In the back of her head she heard the sound of a chair scraping across the ground. Bakugou standing. Good. If something went wrong, she needed to tell him what was happening.

Also, with fear starting to grip her, she realized she wanted him there to stand with her. After their combined fight against the stranger in the bar, it had been easier to see her relationship with Bakugou as a team. Someone to stand with her when things went wrong and help her get back up. At the moment, looking at the expression on Monomo's face, she needed that.

"No, it's when I come to collect," Monomo stated. Most of the time Uraraka would pay online or go into his office. He'd never come in person. Somehow he must have known Uraraka wouldn't be able to pay the amount on her own. "You don't have it then?" While he was trying, Uraraka could see that he barely avoided all-out laughing in victory. "What? That's so strange! I thought you said you would be able to meet every deadline. But you can't? The doesn't that mean the house is mine now?" It felt like her world was coming apart around her. No. No, he couldn't. Over just a few hours?

"I-I can pay! Just wait a bit okay? I can get most of the money, but my friend is coming now to pay the rest,"

"The deal says that at the end of each month if you can't pay the designated amount at least, then you forfeit the house to me." Monomo eyed the house greedily. Probably wondering just how much money he could get out of the house and the property when it was his. "Since you can't pay for it now, then that only means…"

"No!" Uraraka screamed earnestly. "The contract said nothing about hours. I have till the end of the day!" But in truth, she had no idea if that was true. If they were going by the end of the month, then the official date she should have paid was yesterday. For the last few months they had been fine with her paying a little late as long as she paid it. Perhaps because they thought she'd never be able to keep it up and would eventually have to give up the house. But as she got closer to the deadline, they started to panic. So they looked for any loopholes they could find. And that was one she couldn't beat. Time.

Panicking, Uraraka tried to stall, hoping her friends were closer than she knew they were. "P-Please wait, I have the money I promise!" Uraraka tried to think of something to say, not noticing the sound of footsteps getting closer. "I-If you would just wait,"

"I don't have to wait," Monomo interrupted. "From the looks of things you can't pay the designated amount when I am asking you to. And that means," his voice cut off abruptly. The smug look in his eyes was replaced with fear as a large shadow fell over Uraraka's form. "Y-You," he stuttered. Confused, Uraraka tilted her head back so she could see above her.

Bakugou stood in the doorway, barely a hairsbreadth behind Uraraka, with the angriest, most threatening expression Uraraka had ever seen. His arms were braced against the doorway around her, both giving her support and sending a clear message that Monomo was not allowed in. Uraraka was simply surprised and puzzled while it was there. She almost felt bad for Monomo, the one the gaze was directed at. And lesser man would have wet their pants just looking at him. At least she had to give Monomo credit for that. "W-w-what are you doing here…"

"I told you to stay away from this house," Bakugou growled. "Stop harassing my human!" He snapped, making Monomo flinch. "You're making her panic!"

His…human? His anything? "You two know each other?" she asked quite innocently. Monomo on the other hand looked terrified at the question while Bakugou growled in response.

"Yeah. And this f##$%r was warned to stay away after that," Bakugou explained, red eyes still glowering at the man. Uraraka almost had a heart attack. What exactly had happened? Bakugou hadn't caused another fight, had he?

Monomo, still trembling, gathered up his courage and stood straight. "W-well, as it appears this house now belongs to me. So it is you who needs to leave." Bakugou raised an eyebrow while Uraraka's mind returned to the subject at hand. She knew Bakugou had to understand the situation since she had mentioned that she had to pay a certain amount each month. But she didn't want him to have to worry about having a place to stay, especially after losing his first home.

"Look, I can get the money!" Uraraka interrupted the silent battle between the two of them. "This is my parent's house. It's mine by right! Even if it takes me a little longer, I should still be able to keep the house!"

For a moment, Monomo's smug look and genuine fear was marred with a bit of pity. "Miss, look," he explained with a softer tone than Uraraka had ever heard from him. "The company wants this house. If I don't go back right now with the money due, they are going to take it. Do you have the full amount right now or not?" If it had been another time, Uraraka would have appreciated the honesty. But at the moment she was so worried about her house that he couldn't see anything other than an enemy.

"I-I've got most of it," Uraraka tried to assure him, but the expression on his face said that wasn't enough. Desperately, she forced Bakugou to slacken his hold on the doorframe a bit so she could reach to the small table next to the doorway. "Look, see!" Uraraka held up the envelope that contained what money she had to pay off the amount. "I've got most of it here." She handed it to him, giving him the chance to count it out. "It's almost enough, just a bit,"

"It's not enough though." Monomo interrupted. Uraraka's heart sank as he looked up at her, smugness slowly returning. "The house is ours then."

"No! Just-just wait five minutes!" There was a shuffling from behind her, but Uraraka didn't look back. "You can't take my parents' house, they left this for me! I need to,"

"Here."

Bakugou's arm flung out next to Uraraka. Both Uraraka and Monomo looked at the hand in stunned silence. In his hand he held a wad of twenty dollar bills. The glare on his face remained as he held it for Uraraka to take. Ochaco, in shock, slowly turned so she could look him in the eye. Bakugou just stared back at her, as if thinking, _what are you doing round-face? Take the f##$%g money._ "What are you doing Uraraka? Take the f#$%#g money." Wow, pretty close.

"…Bakugou…" Her words came out slowly, to stunned to properly come up with the words she was looking for. "…Where did…did you get that?" Bakugou glanced down at her, impatiently waiting for her to just take the stupid money. But she wouldn't. "Is that the money from the insurance company?" Uraraka asked. "No, you need that-

"It's not." He interrupted quickly. Uraraka stared at him, surprise and confusion mixing in her eyes. "I got it from my job." Uraraka blinked. His job? He HAD a job? Since when? It was true, she noticed that the past few days he had been away longer than she expected, but she hadn't realized he'd found a job. Or was he just returning to the one that he had before the explosion?

"I…" Uraraka didn't know what to say. "I…I can't just take your…"

"I got it for you," Bakugou stated, startling her once again. "So just take it already." After a quick glare at an equally stunned Monomo he added, "I'm not giving it to him." So he would give it to her…so she could give it to him instead.

Touched, relieved and exhaustion over her panic all seemed to hit her at once. The smile she gave him was so relieved that Bakugou's heart skipped a beat. That worried him. Was his heart malfunctioning? "Thank you," Uraraka said, distracting him from his inner turmoil. Cautiously, as if it would disappear, Uraraka took the money that was hanging over her shoulder. With trembling fingers she counted out the amount she needed. "Ah, Bakugou, this is too much,"

"Then keep some of yours," Bakugou retorted. "I told you, I got that for you. Don't be stupid and give it back." Uraraka was so grateful she didn't even notice the insult. Her hands shook as she took the envelope back from Monomo who was too stunned to react. She took out quite a bit from her own stash in order to put the amount Bakugou had given her in. As Monomo counted the money Uraraka held her breath. He even double counted it, just to be sure, which made Uraraka panic even more.

Bakugou seemed to notice this and snarled at Monomo. "Get on with it!"

Monomo jumped. Just out of annoyance to Bakugou, he wanted to say that there wasn't enough. But the amount of money was the agreed amount. If he said no all that would do was make them count it out, prove him wrong and send him packing looking even more pitiful than he already did. So instead, he looked up to meet their eyes with what little smugness he could muster. "…I'll see you again next month." Then he turned away to leave.

"You'd better not!" Bakugou howled at his back as he walked away. Uraraka said nothing, watching in shock as Monomo headed back to his car. She had expected that it would be her having to walk away. But she was still in the house. Safe. Right where she belonged. And she had only one other person to thank.

When the car was gone, Bakugou pulled Uraraka back and slammed the door shut. "What a waste of space," Bakugou growled. "Whoever gave him permission to live on this earth ought to be crushed. Give me some time, then I'll be sure to destroy,"

Uraraka didn't give him the chance to speak. Faster than Bakugou could blink, Uraraka launched herself at him and wrapped her arms around him in the tightest hug imaginable. "Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you!" Oh great. He broke his human. She looked up at him, her eyes wide and wet with hope and happiness. "I was so scared- thank you so much! I will repay every penny, I promise!"

"I-I…" Bakugou gulped. He…gulped? Oh great, he was broken too. Uraraka squealed, her smile so bright and open that Bakugou could have laughed at earth's star for even trying to be as bright as her. And that smile wasn't made for any of the pathetic humans. That smile was for him. Because he made her smile.

When Bakugou smiled, it was the first time Uraraka had seen it without any malice. "You're…welcome." Ah, so that money stuff really WAS worth it. Uraraka beamed, pulling herself tighter into Bakugou's chest. He felt his own cheeks begin to burn, and he wondered if he was starting to lose control of his transformation. Uraraka on the other hand took a bit to pull back and gaze thoughtfully at him. This man who was extremely rude, hated all her friends and seemed to have no disregard for the lives of others had just helped her save her home. Bakugou may have been terrible at speaking with his words. But his actions were enough to melt her heart.

"You're really not all that bad, are you?"

"What the f #k is that supposed to mean?"

Laughing, Uraraka swept the small tears of relief from her eyes. "Nothing."

"It had better- WHY THE F #K ARE YOU CRYING?"

…

* * *

Kirishima practically skipped through the earthen forests. They were strange and different, but in the time they had stayed he had grown to love the smell of the trees and the green of what Jiro called leaves. Especially when he wasn't walking through there alone.

At the moment he was rushing over to their ship, hidden through the forest trees. It was the blue cruiser, made specifically so it could blend in with large bodies of water. Aizawa and Mic had asked Kirishima to be back as soon as possible, but Kirishima wanted to make sure he was back into the human village even faster than that. Jiro, the human girl, had invited him to play those games with their primitive technology at her home again. The graphics and technology were annoying, but Kirishima could handle it! They were fun to play, and he loved watching her laugh when he got excited about the races. Someday, maybe he could take her to join him in an actual race!

This thought was on his mind as he jumped into the ship. His mood was dragged down as he entered the tense atmosphere around him. Aizawa was sitting at the control desk, going over the information they had already found. Mic was playing with a number of electronic contraptions that he'd bought with that 'money' he'd told Kirishima about. It was a good idea to bring him. He knew a whole lot more about the planet than Kirishima had ever been able to learn from the files they'd skimmed over. He wouldn't have been able to talk to Jiro at all if it weren't for him.

And Aizawa would have been even more stressed than he already was, that was certain. "Okay, so let's figure this out. The explosion that caused damage to their building a few moon cycles ago was likely Bakugou arriving. We don't know what happened to him after or where he is in the village-city," he corrected himself when Mic glanced up. "And there have been a number of citing's of a blond man going around taking metal pieces and electronic devices. If this is Bakugou, and it probably is, this means that he is able to disguise his true form. If not the humans would be going on a rampage."

"Hey hey hey!" Mic hollered, breaking both Aizawa and Kirishima's eardrums. "I thought you said this guy was built to destroy. Other than the apartment, nothing's been destroyed! These-" he gestured to the little screen machines, "News reporters have said nothing about him."

"And what does he want all the metal pieces for?" Kirishima piped in. "Is he building something? He's got to have a place to build it in secret if no one has noticed it yet. Or has he made allies on this planet? I know we thought it was unlikely but,"

"I don't KNOW Kirishima!" Aizawa yelled at him. "Bakugou is in this city doing-something that could get him in even more trouble than he already is and could cause the lives of hundreds but we don't even have a clue where he is or what he is doing! The boy should be being shown that he has a chance to do more but as far as we know he could be creating a slave army right now. I know he can be better, but he just leaves without even giving me the chance to-" Aizawa cut himself off when he noticed that the aliens around him were both staring. He gave a deep sigh, then turned back to his desk. "I…Don't know."

Present Mic said nothing. Kirishima wanted to kick himself for not remembering just how much stress Aizawa had been putting himself under these last few weeks. He felt it was his job to make sure Bakugou got another chance at life. But he just ran off before Aizawa could give him that chance.

In an attempt to cheer him up Bakugou spoke up. "He's slated for execution though, right? I guess he can't get himself in any more trouble than that." It was a cheap shot, ignoring the fact that others could suffer because of him. But Aizawa let out a humourless laugh which at least relaxed Bakugou a bit.

Kirishima pitied Aizawa. He didn't understand exactly the relationship between him and Bakugou, but when he had asked Kirishima in person to be their soldier, he knew something was up. All the reports classified Bakugou as a dangerous threat who could kill without a second thought. Endeavor, when checking Kirishima over to make sure he was qualified, made sure he understood that the creature was to be brought in for execution. That he was not to speak to him, engage with him or listen to him in any way. Bring him in, give him to the elites, then go to the next mission.

But Aizawa had told him a different story. He didn't deny that Bakugou was dangerous, or that he could kill without a second thought. But he believed that he had never been given another option. Aizawa had said that he thought if Bakugou Katsuki was trained to think alternatively, then he could be an asset, not a threat. Apparently he had refrained from attacking him and that gave Aizawa hope.

Unfortunately, not even Present Mic seemed to believe him. Kirishima wasn't sure. He hadn't been there when the creature was getting tried, or when he escaped. But he knew Aizawa. He had been one of the ones to help Kirishima become an intergalactic soldier and gave him contacts with the best teachers. Aizawa may have had his faults, but he was usually a good judge of character. And someone who could give others a second chance when no one else would was really manly in Kirishima's books.

Kirishima knew that Aizawa wanted to the one to find Bakugou, and as soon as possible. Kirishima had his orders, and he couldn't be sure he wouldn't follow them. Present Mic was…still not sure his friend was right about this guy. He'd seen a lot of the damage Bakugou had done to the ship and thought his friend was being a bit to idealistic. Aizawa had to get to Bakugou soon, before he did something that would ruin his chances. Stop him BEFORE he destroyed anything or lives were lost. He still wanted to give him a chance. If he couldn't stop him before that, then Aizawa had no hope of convincing the council to change their decision.

The little information they had about the person they assumed was Bakugou involved him causing fights, being watched by the police, and gathering pieces of metal. Best case scenario? He was trying to build a ship to escape the planet, or some form of a surveillance device to learn more about the earthlings. Worst case scenario? It was a weapon.

Kirishima wished he hadn't brought it up. "You know, it may be a good thing that we haven't found anything yet," Kirishima offered. Both Mic and Aizawa turned to him like he was insane. "I mean, other than the explosion, we haven't heard of that much damage other than a few hurt humans. No one is hurt and there hasn't been much destruction. That's a good sign right?"

"Or it just means he's waiting for his moment or planning something for later." Aizawa grumbled, always the optimist.

"Hey, we can't think like that," Kirishima said, hands reaching out as if to hug hum, but slowly falling back to his sides.

For a minute, Aizawa said nothing. He recognized that Kirishima was trying to cheer him up, but knew there was nothing to be said other than _we've found Bakugou, he hasn't done anything and the council has decided to pardon him!_ So with that option out of the way, Aizawa decided there was no point in making Kirishima worry. "Has your human got any information?" He asked.

At least Shouta talking again encouraged Kirishima. "She says the humans still haven't figured out what caused the explosion, but I doubt they ever will if it was his pod self-destructing like we thought. She says that there hasn't been anything different other than Uraraka paying for the house, Todoroki apparently asking her about Yaoyorozu…" he trailed off when even Present Mic looked up from the screens to stare at him.

"What?"

It took Kirishima a second to figure out what they were asking about. "Oh, those are friends of Jiro's. It's not really relevant to our mission."

Aizawa tilted his head in confusion. "Why are you collecting that data?"

Kirishima hesitated, not sure how the attention suddenly turned on him. "It's not…especially helpful to the mission…But it's important to keep up relationships with humans, right? By remembering this stuff, it shows I care!" Kirishima didn't mention that Aizawa had originally stated that there was no point in talking to humans in the first place. "It's for the mission."

"Uh-huh," Present Mic interrupted, a devious knowing look on his face. "I think that our little soldier is just getting feelings for his human girllllll. She your girlfrienddd?" Aizawa hissed. What were they, newborns? Did they want to complain that they didn't get the blue meat instead of the red meat now?

Their soldier on the other hand tilted his head to the side. "What? Of course she's my girlfriend!"

Both Present Mic and Aizawa nearly fell out of their chairs. "You've started dating her?" Mic screamed, ignoring both his friends desperately covering their ears.

When he recovered Kirishima frowned. "Huh? What's a date?" His reaction quickly calmed the two aliens down.

"Oh. Nah Kirishima, girlfriend is a human term that refers to their female lover. Dating is how they humans court each other." Oh, Lover! That made sense. Well, the term 'girlfriend' sounded weird, but if that was how it worked…

"So if I did… 'Dating' with her, then she'd be my lover? Or, eh, girlfriend?" His question caught Mic off-guard. For once he was silent. It was rare to see their earthern culture specialist be at a loss for words. Kirishima wasn't sure what he'd said that had caught him off-guard. Confused, he turned to Aizawa for answers, only to find that his friendly alien partner was just as serious as he was.

Aizawa actually turned his chair so that he was facing Kirishima, the looming threat that Kirishima didn't want to hear what he said hanging over him. "…theoretically yes, but...That is not going to happen, right?" Kirishima scrunched his nose in confusion. "…Kirishima, you're blending into this world better than I expected. But this…relationship can't last." He paused to make sure Kirishima was paying attention. Only that glance was what gave Aizawa the chance to see Kirishima's sunny exterior starting to fade. "You know that, right? Relationships with people in worlds that aren't even a level 3 planet is illegal. And in case you have forgotten, we have a mission. You can keep up this friendship in order to get information, but anything other than that would just hurt you and the human. You know you can't stay here Kirishima,"

"I know." Kirishima interrupted Aizawa. "…Believe me, I know." That had been one of the main things that they engrained into soldiers heads when they were training. Have a romantic relationship with a member of an underdeveloped world wasn't at the top of their importance but it was illegal in their politics. They were people who did not even know about the existence of other species, so have a relationship of them was considered taking advantage of their lack of knowledge. Even as he made the friendship with Jiro, he had reminded himself that it had to be a brief, shallow friendship at the most.

But then they'd started talking. Then he'd seen how flustered she got over the smallest compliments or kind gestures. Her laugh when he did something goofy like try to pick up those animals she called pigeons. How excited she was while playing those racing games or talking about music made by humans Kirishima had never heard of. They went to tour the city, the area she lived in, the place she worked, all these precious things that

Eventually Krishima started to think that what was supposed to be a shallow friendship had become something that meant so much more to him. And despite the law telling him it was wrong, his heart yearned for more.

He knew these humans were smart! It wasn't like he was trying to date a teenager, she was his age in years. They were great people, all of the ones that Jiro introduced him to! Maybe they didn't have the same extensive knowledge of the universe, but most of them showed the capabilities of understanding it all! It wasn't their fault that they happened to be born into a species that wasn't technologically advanced enough yet. But they were capable of interacting with other species. They were smart emotionally and mentally. He didn't want to trick or hold any power over Jiro. He wanted to learn all about her world and teach her all about his.

Just not telling her who he was was critical to them gaining information.

And despite the fact that Kirishima had been the one to remind others of that, he was the one wishing he could find a way to just tell her everything.

…

* * *

After their conversation, Kirishima had decided he needed some air. Both Aizawa and Present Mic tried to tell him to stay at the ship, but Kirishima assured them he was fine. He just needed to go for a walk. Clear his head and…Maybe make some decisions.

What he knew about interspatial relationships with residents of worlds below a world 3 level was nothing new to him. He'd found that the easiest part of his training to get through. Since he'd never cared about relationships, he never even gave much thought to it. The fact that he was even struggling with the law would have made his past self-drop their jaw in shock. Every time he stopped to think about this, he felt guilty. Not just that he wanted to break the law, but that it was a reminder of what he was doing.

Jiro had been honest with him. Whenever he asked a question she would answer him honestly. He doubted she even thought about lying to him. But every time she wanted to learn more about him, his answers were so vague he sometimes had to lay on top of the space ship and star at the stars while wishing that gravity would fail and he'd be flung into space like a comet. He wasn't a good liar! He hated lying! He just wanted to tell her absolutely everything he could. Sometimes he had to cover his mouth to stop from completely spilling everything and everything about the whole universe.

What was worse? After Jiro had been opening up to him about how she felt like she wasn't doing enough with her life, she smiled up at him with her cheeks a light shade of pink. _Y-you know, I'm really glad I went to the music store that day. I'm glad I've got someone I can be so honest with that I trust._

Kirishima wanted to die.

With a groan, Kirishima ran his hands across his face and forced himself to focus on his path. Only then did he realize where his legs had carried him. Kirishima found himself standing in front of Jiro's home building she called an apartment. Inwardly he cursed himself. Why had he walked there? Had his body unconsciously brought him to the first and last place he wanted to be? Of course he wanted to see her. But he knew his responsibilities said that when he saw her, he would have to make a big decision. Though it wasn't very manly, Kirishima took a step back to turn away.

"Kirishima!" Oh no.

Turning, he caught sight of Jiro walking down the streets, a bag of food in the paper bag. Instantly he double checked to make sure he had transformed properly. Every time he went back to see her, Kirishima had to remind himself to hide his features enough to appear human. His pointed teeth, red eyes, skin the same thickness of metal and sizzling hair wouldn't go away, but he could at least hide the rest. His skin that was normally near transparent with red undertones was turned pale to match the other humans. His hands which were usually pointed into claws were softened just enough so that only the nails were pointy. Thankfully humans always wore coverings over their tops, because if not they would see that his chest was not just a faded transparent colour but completely transparent with a glowing layer of heat that hid his inner organs and got extremely bright around his heart. That would have been pretty difficult to explain…Not to mention the three cuts along each side of his neck which let him breath through smoke, low oxygen levels and underwater. Yeah, that would be pretty hard too.

But he wouldn't ever have the chance.

Right. He needed to talk to her. He couldn't continue lying to her like this. Even if that meant he couldn't see her then…She'd be better off that way.

Oh why did she have to turn such a nice shade of red on her cheeks when she saw him? And that shy smile was going to be the death of him.

On his planet everyone had red hair and eyes and the layer below their skin on their chest was the red of flames. But the way humans did it, slowly turn a brighter shade of red at their pudgy cheeks when they were embarrassed, hot or too happy? It was the cutest thing Kirishima had ever seen! No one from his planet was capable of doing that.

He was going to miss that when he left.

Unable to run away, Kirishima simply waited as Jiro jogged over to him. "Hey, what's up? I thought we weren't meeting till later?" Right. He'd forgotten about their plans together.

"I know. But I just…happened to be around, so…" He gave that sheepish smile that made Jiro's heart skip a beat. "Are you busy?"

"N-no! Course not!" That came out way too quickly. _Smooth Jiro,_ she berated herself. While cringing inside, she opened the door to the lobby. "Come on, we'll play some games. I hope you like dollar store ramen, cause that was all I was gonna eat." Kirishima had no idea what that was, but as long as it wasn't poison he really didn't care.

Jiro led him to the elevator, inwardly having her own little battle with herself. _He's here early. Why is he here early? I was planning on having some time to calm down, to think over what I was going to say?_ Jiro silently cursed Momo for even getting the idea in her head in the first place. _Oh gosh, am I realllly going to do this?_ She moaned to herself.

As they got in the elevator, Kirishima could feel Jiro's body temperature begin to rise. He hadn't done anything yet, so he couldn't figure out what had startled her. The species from his planet were based around strength and heat, which meant that not only was his body build to be physically stronger in battle, but it radiated heat from his hair and chest. On the plus side, he was able to sense the heat in others. For most alien species, this meant nothing, but humans were warm-blooded. It had become the perfect tell when he and Aizawa had gone around questioning humans. "Are you okay?" He asked, making Jiro jump. "Your heat-ah, you look kind of nervous." He found out the hard way that human's couldn't sense the heat in others unless touching them. Once they had been questioning one girl who had been giving Aizawa a few dreamy looks. Kirishima had mentioned that her body was overheating and the women got so embarrassed she didn't answer any more of their questions.

"Y-yeah…" Jiro stuttered, fingering the necklace of a skull around her neck. "I…Actually, can I ask you something?" Her own breath caught as she said it.

 _What are you doing? There's no way someone as cool as him would be interested in someone like you!_ Maybe. Yeah, that was the voice that Jiro let run her thoughts a lot lately. But her friends put other little voices in her head. _Jiro, you are absolutely wonderful! He'd be lucky to have you!_ Momo had told her. _Come on, you're so cool Jiro! You play video games, love rock music, and can magically find ways to never get your headphones all tied up! What else could a guy want?_ Said Kaminari, but she wasn't sure how reliable he was. _You'll only get a no if you never say anything,_ Uraraka had advised her. There was enough voices in her head telling her to go for it so that her own was at least quiet enough to let her take the chance.

Kirishima's heart froze. Oh gosh. He already had important stuff to figure out. Now she had something she needed to discuss? "Sure," he asked, barely containing a fearful squeal. "What's up?"

"Uh…" Jiro ran one hand through her hair in frustration. "Oh man, this is gonna sound so stupid. L-look, do you wanna…I don't know, just…Go get a coffee sometime?"

"Coffee?" he asked. Jiro misinterpreted what he was confused about and went on.

"O-Or it doesn't have to be coffee! It could be dinner…or even brunch or something with food because it seems like all happy events seem to involve food," She added, a little sarcastic at the end. Kirishima had to bite his lip to keep from smiling. While he loved her deadpan humor, he could tell she was trying to be as serious as possible. "W-what I'm trying to say," She stopped to take a deep breath. "W-w-would you…uh….wannagooutonadatewithmesometime?" She sped through her words so fast that she doubted he caught them. A part of her hoped he didn't.

Unfortunately for her, his particular species was known for being adaptable to different situations. Often their skin was tough to combat any potential danger. When it got to loud, like around present Mic, he was able to adapt to nullify the effects of his noise. When it was quiet, like around Jiro who got flustered and nervous a lot, Kirishima automatically adjusted his ears so he could understand when she was speaking to quickly or to quietly. And he had caught every word perfectly.

"…A date." Jiro flushed immediately and covered her face with both hands. She wished she wasn't such a schoolgirl. She was twenty four! Wasn't the ideal scenario that when she was at that age she didn't get flustered about dating anymore? Or that she was some super cool boss girl that could ask anyone she wanted out? Oh gosh, why couldn't she not be such a dork? Ugh…

While Jiro went through her emotional turmoil, Kirishima's body felt like he had just jumped into a volcano. A date? As in the courting thing that Present Mic had been talking about? As in, she was trying to court him? Romantically? One side of his head was leaping for joy. _Yes! She likes me to! We can do this!_ The other side was returning to the dilemma he had been planning on talking about with her that very day. _She's HUMAN. You can't do that! That is illegal! You want to be in a relationship where you can't even tell her who your parents are? With someone who probably doesn't know the Fires of Rebirth celebration? How are you going to explain this to Aizawa?_ He really hated the sensible part of his brain for having so many good points.

But if…if she was asking him out, then he was just going along with his cover, right? That was what Aizawa would call a loophole right?

 _Anything other than that would just hurt you and the human._

Kirishima didn't want to hurt Jiro. He didn't want to feel the pain that he knew would come when he had to leave. But…he was already pretty deep in anyway, right? How much of a difference would it make if he just continued the path he was going to take? Before he left, before he would have to end it all and never see her again, they ought to make the most of their time together, right? For better or for worse, Kirishima always had a habit of following his emotional side rather than his logical side. 

Ignoring the little voice in his head that said it was a bad idea, Kirishima grinned so wide that it revealed his pointed teeth. "Yeah!"

Jiro was snapped out of her momentary depression so fast it had to be a world record. "Y-Yeah?"

"A date! That's what lovers do, right?"

Jiro nearly had a heart-attack. "O-one date doesn't make us lovers!" Instantly Kirishima's face fell. Embarrassed, but also a little flattered, she added, "I mean…it could in the future." _Do not make eye contact, do not make eye contact! His smile could make a crying baby laugh, do not look into his eyes!_

"Yes!" Kirishima whooped while pumping a fist in the air, making Jiro's face turn an even brighter shade of red. "Awesome! That sounds manly! Let's do a date!"

"Ah, go on a date," Jiro corrected him even though he didn't hear her. She couldn't do anything to take that adorable smile off of his face if she tried. Kirishima was still a big red ball of sunshine as the elevator dinged and they got off on Jiro's floor. Jiro, who was still as red as a sunset, tried to calm down the conversation a bit. "Oh, hey, Uraraka was able to pay of the house this month!"

It seemed to work and Kirshima's excitement faded enough to speak. "That's great!"

"Yeah, that guest of hers was willing to pay off what she couldn't. He even got a job just to help her. How awesome is that?"

"Sounds really manly," Kirishima agreed, though was starting to get annoyed with Jiro praising someone else so fondly.

"I know. I mean, I feel pretty bad that I didn't like him before now. When Uraraka told me she was letting him stay at her house after the apartment building exploded, I thought she was out of her mind for letting a stranger no one seemed to know stay with her. And he had been wearing this weird costume to, like a cosplay or something. And after he took her dad's record player for some ship he's apparently building in the backyard, I wanted her to kick him out!" Jiro shook her head, still a little miffed about that whole thing. "But turns out he's not as bad as I thought…Or he thinks he's going to be staying long enough that he needs to pay rent." That made Jiro pause as she contemplated that. "Man…if that's so, Uraraka's going to need to get used to having a housemate. Really, I don't know why she didn't think about that when she first got her parents' house. It could have been good…"

As Jiro trailed off, Kirishima on the other hand was at red alert. Weird costume? Ship building? Came from the apartment that exploded yet no one seemed to know him? HIM? Kirishima was getting an odd feeling about this stranger, with suspicions that he hoped he was wrong about. "Has he…gotten into any fights?" It took Jiro a minute to realize that he had backtracked back to Uraraka's housemate.

After giving him an odd look she said, "Oddly specific, but yeah actually. Remember, he's the one who was their when Uraraka got fired. Uraraka said both of them were in the fight but if you ask me…" As she talked about it, she remembered another conversation she had had with Uraraka. "You know, Uraraka was saying that he does a lot of the stuff you do? Maybe you're both from the same country. Where are you from again?"

Instantly Kirishima felt that pang of guilt as he rushed to come up with an answer. "Ah…real far away. Small country. Doubt you heard of it. But, uh, what's his name?" Guilt could wait. Besides, if this was going where he was thinking it was, Kirishima thought Aizawa would forgive him.

"His name is Bakugou Katsuki. Any chance you know him?"

"…Yeah, I think so. Any chance I could meet him?"


	12. Time to Relax

Time to Relax

Uraraka couldn't believe it. Somehow they were able to pay of next month's bill…early? Was that possible?

But she stared at her account, knowing full well that it was true. The money for next month had been given in a week before their deadline.

It took Uraraka to realize that the reason her cheeks were hurting was because her smile was so wide. "EEE!" She couldn't help but squealing while falling back in her chair. Somehow, she-no, they had done it. With Bakugou's help they had managed to pay off the month's bill early and with money to spare. Jiro was right, Uraraka really should have started renting out rooms.

Uraraka was so excited, she sprinted out of the kitchen and to the backyard. Bakugou's ship was looking much better, though it didn't look much like a boat. The bottom half was nearly complete, completely filled with no holes and showed a masters workmanship. He had metal wings lying next to each side but not attached yet. And there was a large, transparent dome at the side that Uraraka guessed was supposed to be the top. It looked more like a tourist submarine than it did a boat. _Where the heck did he learn to make that?_ Uraraka wondered.

Ignoring it for the time, Uraraka rushed around the back where there were rough wooden stairs made for an entrance inside. Bakugou was, of course, working on the control area. There were a lot more wires, a number of screens around and some systems that looked like they were old sound machines or video game parts. Uraraka hoped he got these from the dumpster and didn't steal any of them. As she walked closer, she noticed in the corner was a pile of old parts. Only the wooden box was identifiable as the record player. Looking closer, she could tell that all the parts were from the record player. There were signs of an attempt to put it back together, but no victory. One part actually looked worse than before, as if out of frustration Bakugou had gone on a rage and broken part of it. Seeing the sight of her record player destroyed was disheartening…But the fact that Bakugou had tried to put it back together again lifted her spirits.

Some people she loved were gone…but new relationships were being created.

Smiling, Uraraka strolled over to Bakugou. He was working with some metal, sparks flying around him as he worked. He probably had a blowtorch or something. If that was the case, she was worried he wasn't wearing any safety equipment. "Bakugou!" she exclaimed happily. Her companion was so startled he whirled around, eyes wide open at the interruption.

"You-" Spinning back around, Uraraka assumed he cleaned up what he was doing and shut off the blowtorch before turning back to her, face turned hard into a glare. "Don't f #$%%g sneak up on me! I could have been untransfor- You could have made me slip up!"

"You make mistakes?"

"NO!"

"Then why are you worried?" Uraraka teased with a giggle. Bakugou snarled again, but couldn't think up a comeback in time. Instead Uraraka tried to see around him to the desk. "Where did you get a blowtorch?"

"A what?" He asked, confused.

"To fuse the parts together! You…." But when Uraraka looked around him, there was no blow torch on the desk. _Had I just imagined the sparks just now?_ "Where…where did the fire come from just now?"

Uraraka wasn't paying attention enough to notice Bakugou look disturbed. "There was no fire. You're seeing things." He couldn't blow his cover just yet. He needed her to think he was just an ordinary human so she wouldn't cause a panic.

While she was confused, Uraraka decided there was no point in dwelling on it. Instead she focused on Bakugou again and showed him one of her biggest smiles ever. Bakugou thought it was so wide, perhaps she was secretly an alien to. "I just finished paying off the house bill for this month~" she told him in a sing-song voice. Bakugou blinked, clearly wondering why this concerned him.

"…You interrupted my work for that?" Uraraka huffed, though there wasn't much malice behind it.

"Bakugou! This is the first time I've been able to pay off the monthly house bill early! I'm that much closer to owning the house!" Again, Bakugou just stared at her, waiting for her to get to the point. Sighing, Uraraka tried again. "…aaand it's thanks to you that I was able to pay it off this month…"

"Get to the point round-face." Ah, round-face again. He must have been really busy with whatever he was working on.

"I wanted to thank you!" Uraraka explained. "I mean, I promise I will pay you back for everything when I can." Bakugou's scowl depend when she said that. He didn't give two craps about her paying him back. What did he need human money for? If she was going to promise him anything, her undying servitude and an oath of loyalty would be better. "So I was thinking that we should go do something! To, you know, celebrate! Maybe use a bit of the extra money to see a movie, or we can walk around town, maybe go for a hike…"

Bakugou's eyes lit up at that. Ah, so she wanted to return the favour through physical means. He doubted that she would be able to help build the ship…and there wasn't that much he wanted to see on this measly planet…On the other hand, if she was offering to do physical actions… "Learn to fight."

Uraraka drew back when Bakugou interrupted her listing off ideas. "What?"

"Learn to fight. Or at least as much as a human can fight," He added for good measure. "You have the body of a fighter, so learn to fight back against stupid humans like that man at the bar." While crossing his arms Bakugou added, "And maybe after getting stronger yourself, you would be able to see just how much of a weakling Deku is." Bakugou sneered at that.

On the other hand Uraraka had to hold back a sigh when he insulted her best friend. Again. "Bakugou, I can fight," Uraraka reminded him. "I helped knock that guy down, remember?" After a moment to think about it, she lit up. "Oh! But we can go sparring! Do you know any martial arts or forms of boxing? We can head down to the gym next to the firehouse! I'm allowed to use it whenever I want, and it would only cost you ten dollars to get in for the day." Maybe not even that.

Bakugou on the other hand raised an eyebrow. Sparring? There was no way the human had any chance of even making him break a sweat. "Sounds like a stupid idea."

After a pause Uraraka pretended to not be paying attention to Bakugou as she spoke. "I used to train there with Todoroki sometimes…"

"LET'S GO! MOVE YOUR A # I'M GOING TO SHOW YOU HOW TO FIGHT BETTER THAN THAT HALF-AND-HALF B #$%D EVER COULD!"

Inwardly, Uraraka beamed. Easier than stealing candy from a baby.

* * *

"This is where the human works?"

Kirishima pretended to laugh when they got a few odd looks. "Uh, Aizawa? I found out pretty quickly that humans get confused when you refer to them as only…humans."

It had taken a while before Aizawa agreed to come to the firehouse. Most of the mission he would groan at the idea of visiting the human villages. He'd much rather work on the data they'd found or take a nap in his pod. The only reason Kirishima had been able to convince him to come was because he'd said it would help him find Bakugou. The only reason Aizawa claimed he would go outside was if they had information on Bakugou. When he realized they were just going to find more information on his human, he wasn't too happy. But after the first few weeks of no hope, Aizawa was just grateful they had finally found him.

Well, sort of. Kirishima had. And so far, they had only found more questions.

When Kirishima had returned saying that his human friend knew Bakugou, Aizawa was skeptical that she'd found the same person. Then Kirishima had been able to meet with him.

"Well?" Aizawa had asked. "What happened?"

"…First off, he didn't recognize me."

That had made Aizawa raise one eyebrow. "What?"

"As an alien. He thought I was another human. That's why I didn't realize it was Bakugou until he gave his name. I thought he grew up learning about other alien lifeforms! Shouldn't he be able to identify another one?" Kirishima had looked so perplexed that it was like teaching him to use a sonic engine all over again.

"I don't know the full details of Bakugou's life. But its possible Overhaul didn't think that Bakugou recognizing whether someone was disguising themselves or not was important. Besides, a majority of aliens can't disguise themselves to look human and earth is the only world where it would even be necessary. He probably thought the odds of it being useful were slim, so he wasn't trained for it." Strange. In the military, they were trained to spot the signs of any alien who may be disguising their features. Only a few species could actually do it without technological help, but it was still important to know.

Kirishima remembered the first words Bakugou spoke to him. _"Who the F#$k is this f #$$#r?"_

 _He blinked in surprise. "Um…Kirishima?"_

 _"Name doesn't ring a bell," the blonde man had said before grabbing the door. "Go away."_

 _"Hey!" Jiro kicked at the door before he could close it. "Don't be rude! Just because you helped pay off one month doesn't mean you own the house now!"_

 _"Eh? And who are you?" the man sneered, leaning forward to leer over Jiro. As he did, Kirishima caught sight of a few things. Present Mic had told him a number of traits that could be used to identify Aliens on earth. One, the red eyes, an easy way to identify an alien since human eyes didn't come in that colour. Two, the grid-like designs on his arms that were likely the indents of his true body. The smile was a bit two wide, but Kirishima couldn't be sure about that. Three though, and the most important one, was that the belt around his pants was clearly not a belt. Any human wouldn't have noticed, but it was clear to see that it moved with Bakugou, not the clothes._

 _Definitely an alien._

 _"Jiro!" A voice from behind the man called before a shorter female human popped out. "It's great to see you! And-Kirishima right?" The girls smile became almost suggestive when she glanced back at Jiro. Subtly Jiro had been shaking her head no as her body temperature raised, but Kirishima never figured out why. "I'm Uraraka, so happy to meet you! Jiro has been talking all about you."_

 _"She has?" Kirishima perked up. Jiro groaned while Uraraka contained a giggle._

 _After noticing the man-alien was still glowering, Uraraka rushed to save them. "Ah, right." Uraraka moved around the alien so she could see them all. "This is my house guest- Bakugou Katsuki! He's really much nicer than he looks."_

 _Kirishima really doubted that. Bakugou? The one they were looking for? Even though Jiro had told him where he was, a part of him didn't believe it. Aizawa had said it was impossible that Bakugou could somehow be living peacefully with a human. What Jiro said before confirmed that the metal he was gathering was for a ship, but that didn't explain how he was living with…a human? And that apparently he'd done work to help them keep their house? Why? Aizawa had said he would probably think more about destroying a house than helping them keep it. The behaviour was so out of character for what was supposed to be a deranged criminal that Mic wondered of Bakugou Katsuki happened to be a popular name. Aizawa on the other hand had showed the first signs of hope that Kirishima had seen in him the whole trip._

 _"Sorry about him," Uraraka said carelessly putting a hand on Bakugou's shoulder. Kirishima instinctively held his breath, preparing for the onslaught. But, to his surprise, all that Bakugou did was snarl at her before turning back to glare at him. Bakugou Katsuki was supposed to be an untameable creature that did not listen to sense, had no recollection of right or wrong and would kill someone just for looking at them weird. This was…not like the villain Kirishima was promised. "Come on!" Uraraka laughed. "We should eat! I ordered pizza!"_

 _"YOU ordered the pizza?" Jiro said, stunned. "I mean- I'm sorry, that came out weird,"_

 _"Its fine," Uraraka laughed. "It's thanks to Bakugou!" She faced Bakugou, and Kirishima was sure he didn't imagine the little sparkle in her eyes._

 _And, to his utter shock, he also noticed when Bakugou, the merciless killing machine, looked away as if he was embarrassed. "Whatever."_

 _Uraraka smiled like she was used to it. "Come on in! Dinner will get cold!"_

Kirishima had reported back to his superiors that day absolutely stunned. "He was…not acting like the villain everyone says he is. I mean, he's still pretty mean, grumpy and ready to pick a fight with anyone. Judging from his strength he's certainly strong enough to take over the world. But dudes, he isn't. The guy is actually not that bad once you get to know him."

The soldier had worried that both his superiors would assume he got bad information and send him back. Luckily, Aizawa eyes shown with a newfound hope and sense of triumph that had been missing the rest of the trip. "I knew he could be good."

"Hey hey hey," Present Mic had interrupted. "He could be putting on an act. Maybe he finds the humans too much of a threat." From the way that Kirishima had seen him acting, he doubted Bakugou was thinking that.

"Or maybe one of them was able to get close enough to show him that he could be good," Aizawa threw back. While cooling down, Aizawa had rested his chin in his palm and gazed into space thoughtfully. "I was expecting that I'd have to bring him to the planet of the Superiors, where they are all trained for emotional maturity. But a human was able to calm him? I wonder what she did…"

It was only the promise of getting more information on this human-and in turn, Bakugou- that was able to convince Aizawa to leave his nest. Aizawa's eyes scanned the setting that humans called a gym, the more simplified version of Kirishima's training arenas. Jiro had showed Kirishima the gym a few weeks back when they decided to work out together one day. He remembered Jiro's face turning red from heat and when he lifted the weights above his head. That had been a good day.

A few humans were staring at the dark heavy clothing Aizawa was wearing. If he cared more he would have tried to dress to fit in. "What are the chances that he will be here today?" Kirishima snapped out of his daydream at Aizawa's question.

"Well, not really likely. But Jiro said that his human works with her and she goes to the gym to blow off steam. I'd bet living with him would mean she is tired a lot." Kirishima shrugged. "It would probably be too dangerous to bring Bakugou to a place like this anyway. I mean, he's still pretty volatile. Keeping him in a crowded place like this with only humans would probably make him mad. I doubt he'd come any time soon."

"He's here."

"Right. We're just here to try and get some more information on his human and through her…" Kirishima trailed off as his mind connected with Aizawa's words. "…What?"

"Move!" In seconds Aizawa had grabbed Kirishima and dragged him into a room Jiro called the 'men's locker room.' they were fortunate it was empty, cause they would certainly be getting odd looks if it wasn't. Kirishima and Aizawa both leaned into the doorway and cracked it open a smidge, just enough so that they could see what was outside.

Sure enough, Kirishima's mouth dropped open as Bakugou followed Uraraka through the door. He was wearing baggy pants and a loose black tank-top that showed off the 'tattoos' on his arms clearly. (Apparently the humans thought they were some form of an inked design.) The snarl was also plain on his face, especially when other humans glanced at him. If he ever caught one of them he'd fix them with a death stare and a growl, usually sending them running back to what they were doing. Uraraka looked like his exact opposite. She strolled through the lobby comfortably, waving hello to friends and smiling at strangers. The human appeared quite bubbly as she went up to the front desk, while Bakugou's movements were tense and frustrated. Just the fact that he was there was the shocking part. What could that human have possibly done?

"Is that,"

"Yeah," Kirishima confirmed. "Her name is Uraraka. He's living at her house. I think she believes he lived in the building he destroyed and offered him a place to stay." Krishima grimaced at the thought. "Kind of sucks that her kindness is being given to the destroyer." Aizawa said nothing. Instead he focused on the two, trying to listen to their conversation.

While he had been with Bakugou, he had done his best to try and advise him, get close to him. He hoped he had given a good start, shown Bakugou something different. But during the passing days Aizawa had realized that he needed more. His personality gave him something different, but just one person wasn't enough to convince a man who had seen cruelty from hundreds. Bakugou needed to see a kind of person he had never seen before. Not another soldier like Aizawa, or another scientist like Overhaul. He needed someone completely different, someone who could show him kindness in a way he would never expect it.

Had the human become that person? Or was this just a temporary fix?

The sound of laughter shocked both of them out of their thoughts. "B-Bakugou, that's a vending machine! How have you never seen a vending machine before?"

"Shut up! What do I care about some weak piece of human technology? It looks useless!" The human giggled before slipping a few pieces of metal into a slot on the machine. She pressed a few more buttons, there were whirling sounds, then the sound of something banging, making Bakugou jump in surprise. With a smile on her face the human reached down and put her hand through a slot at the bottom. Bakugou hissed, probably thinking she was going to pull out a weapon.

Instead he came out with a plastic bottle filled with a red liquid. "See? One strawberry juice. Not so useless, huh?" She tossed the drink to him and he caught it easily. For a moment it seemed like he was carefully surveying the drink. Making sure it wasn't poison or an explosive material.

Then, to Aizawa's shock, Bakugou carelessly opened the bottle and took a quick gulp. "Tsk." He didn't bother arguing with her or proving her wrong. The human grinned happily. "Wipe that f ##$*&g smirk off your face!" Aizawa tensed, ready for the human to run screaming or for Bakugou to tear her face off for disrespect. Instead his human laughed-actually laughed- before easily turning away and guiding Bakugou towards the gym. Aizawa was sure his mouth had dropped open when Bakugou followed without a word. Two things Aizawa was certain of? Bakugou did not trust anyone enough to drink something they gave them right away.

Two? Bakugou HATED being proven wrong.

Yet right before his eyes, he had not only taken a drink someone had given him without complaint, but did not fight back when she said he was wrong about the human machinery. Had Aizawa's first initial analysis of Bakugou been false? No, that couldn't be. He was certain of that.

But his theory on the other hand was also being proven right. All Bakugou needed was a chance to change.

"See? He's nothing like what everyone- Aizawa?" Kirishima only noticed after he was gone that Aizawa had sprinted through the locker room to the second entrance that went to the gym. From there he watched closely as Bakugou followed the human to a large bag. Judging from what other humans were doing, they were punching bags. Leaning into the door, he pulled out what humans would assume are headphones and a small box. In reality the devise were made to amplify sound and record visual settings. When Kirishima caught up to him and saw this, he drew back in surprise. "What are you doing?"

"Recording," Aizawa started flatly. "Make sure no humans come." Confused, Kirishima followed orders and made sure no one came their way. Aizawa focused on Bakugou, especially his interactions with the human. In court he had no way to prove Bakugou would change. But if he could send video footage of Bakugou's different behaviour, the court would have to at least consider repealing their verdict.

It was a long-shot. But seeing Bakugou gave Aizawa hope.

"Do you know any martial arts?" Over at the punching bag, Ochaco allowed Bakugou to stretch a bit while she grabbed them some boxing gloves. While she had changed into her workout clothes- tank top and sweat pants- Bakugou wore the same black shirt as always and a pair of dark sweats. That was fine, but he insisted on keeping his belt around his waist. Why? It wasn't even holding his pants up. _Well, as long as he's comfortable,_ Ochaco told herself. _This was his idea._

At her question, Bakugou scoffed. "I can fight better than any f #%*%g person on this planet could ever dream."

"If you say so," Ochaco sighed, deciding not to put on a fight. She'd already decided not to ask too many questions that day. For some reason, ever since she had changed into her workout uniform Bakugou kept sneaking glances at her. She wasn't sure what was wrong with her clothes, and if she tried to ask he'd start sputtering and yell at her. Perhaps he was having an off day. Uraraka decided not to risk annoying him.

"What, you don't think I'm strong?" too late.

"I didn't say that! I know you can fight Bakugou, remember?" She rolled her eyes when the bar fight was brought up. "It's just that I'm used to sparring with a number of different people so I wanted to know what experience you have!" before Bakugou could remind her that he was the one who wanted to make sure she could fight, she went on ahead and listed some names. "Most of the time I spar with Jiro, though she knows more karate than boxing…Momo knows some jujitsu…Todoroki once in a while…but mostly Gunhead, Midoriya and Shinsou!" She added, the memories bringing a smile to her face. "You know Shinsou, right? He works with me at the fire house! He trained me a bit when I first got here. Sometimes when his partner is late he and I work out here together…"

Uraraka continued on excitedly praising her friends, ignorant to the growing seed of hatred that was boiling in Bakugou. Momo, her old teacher she talked about and Jiro didn't bother him to much but Todoroki? Midoriya? Another freaking guy? Who the heck was Shinsou and why was she working out with him? Was she actually suggesting that they could teach her to spar better than he could? "You actually think those f#$%*s are stronger than me?" Bakugou growled. "Get f$%*# g ready, I'm going to blow your puny human mind!"

Uraraka tried to hide a smile as he stomped over to the punching bag. Shaking her head she let it go and followed him to the punching bag. "Alright…but let's do some warmups before we actually get star…" Uraraka trailed off as Bakugou grabbed the ends of his shirt and slipped it off. She hadn't seen him working out much around her house, but he must have. He was almost, if not more fit than many of the fire-fighters she worked with. It wasn't like she hadn't seen another guy without their shirt, since again, she worked at a fire-house. And technically, Bakugou's muscles weren't as defined as some she could mention. Yet when he turned back to her, she felt her mouth was a little parched. "O-Oh," Ochaco stuttered, eyes widening as her cheeks started turning red.

Bakugou noticed the change and raised an eyebrow. "What? Are you broken?"

Ochaco snapped her mouth shut. "N-No! You just…ah, y-you, ah…I d-didn't know you had tattoos on your back!" Bakugou seemed to flinch at the comment.

"None of your business," he scowled before turning away. Uraraka frowned, but let the topic go. Instead she decided to spend her time trying to focus on warming up instead of continuously glancing at Bakugou as he fought.

…It was harder than she cared to admit.

The two of them worked side-by-side warming up themselves. Uraraka tried to get a few glances in to see how strong Bakugou really was, but she kept getting distracted by his figure and had to force herself to look away so she wouldn't get caught. From what she saw he was only doing basic warmups, push-ups and sit-ups, throwing a few punches at the punching bag. After a few minutes he didn't look tired at all. He actually looked rather annoyed, as if he wanted to break a sweat but hadn't. "W-we can warmup some more if you aren't ready to spar…"

"I've been maintaining my energy to prepare myself for battle," Bakugou told her. "Don't you f $$*%g take this from me."

"Right…" Uraraka replied. Once there was a space free the two of them jumped into a spare ring. There weren't many people there, so Uraraka had to use her phone as a timer. "We'll just spar until either one of us is too exhausted to continue or we tap out. You know the basic rules right? No cheap shots, no broken bones, and we stop fighting if there is any blood." Bakugou twitched in annoyance at the last few rules, but otherwise let it go. "Alright!" Uraraka jumped up, bouncing on the edges of her feet. "Don't you dare go easy on me! I'm stronger than I look!" She flexed to show off a bit. Bakugou wasn't sure why he continued to stare at her arm even when she pulled it back down.

"Wasn't planning to," Bakugou stated, his blood starting to boil as his smile began to grow. He'd been missing a real fight in a long time. His human had showed good instincts before when they fought the human weakling, but did that really mean she was tough? He hoped so. And he wasn't going to let his guard down until he was sure that was true. A primal level of excitement coursed through him at the idea of finally fighting Uraraka and seeing what she was made of. "I'm gonna f (#*$g overwhelm you."

Unwillingly, Memories of the bar fight flashed through her mind. She remembered how terrifying Bakugou had appeared in that moment, when he smiled over his victim like he enjoyed the power he had over him. Uraraka couldn't stop the shiver that went over her spine imagining what it would be like if Bakugou looked at her with those eyes.

As soon as the idea shot through her head, she shook it away. No. She was not weak. She was strong, she knew how to fight, and she most certainly wasn't…okay, she was a little scared. But that didn't matter. Bakugou was her friend. She trusted him. No matter how the battle went, she hoped-no, she believed Bakugou would not treat her like some criminal. "I…" She gulped unconsciously, making Bakugou raise an eyebrow. "I won't lose!"

Unknowingly, her response shot her up in Bakugou's approval ratings. "We'll see about that," he sneered. "So when can I,"

Her phone let out a ding.

"Now!" Before Bakugou had the chance to respond, Uraraka launched herself at him. With a snarl Bakugou pulled backwards to narrowly avoid Uraraka's punch. Unfortunately for him, Uraraka used his distraction and kicked the back of his legs. Bakugou felt a jolt of surprise when he hit the ground with a bang. Uraraka had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing. "I-I thought you knew how to fight!"

"OF COURSE I F #$$%G KNOW HOW TO FIGH S $$%&$(D! YOU CAUGHT ME OFF GUARD! I'LL DESTROY YOU NOW!"

If Uraraka had more self-control, she would have known not to roll her eyes. "If you say sooo," she sang. Under her breath so Bakugou couldn't hear her she whispered, "Actions speak louder than words though."

If Bakugou was human, he wouldn't have heard that. Unfortunately for Uraraka, he wasn't. "You are going to be begging me for mercy…"

Nearly two hours later and Uraraka regretted ever talking back to him.

For what had to be the 13th time that evening Uraraka slammed to the ground with a huff. Groaning, she rubbed her arms as Bakugou leered over her with a grin. "What? You're not done are you?"

"O-of course not," Uraraka said with enough bite to make her think Bakugou may have been influencing her more than he should be. Bakugou had won almost every single match! Uraraka had gotten a few good hits in to give her some advantage, but Bakugou was much faster than she thought he was. Where exactly had he gotten his training? She'd been training to fight for years and then some with Gunhead, yet Bakugou made it look like all that training was for nothing. Maybe he was secretly with Midoriya in the CIA or where ever he worked…

As Uraraka pulled herself to her feet, Bakugou had crossed his arms and was mumbling to himself. "At least you're stronger than most of these weakling humans."

The statement was such a shock Uraraka's mouth literally dropped open. "Bakugou Katsuki, was that a compliment?"

"SHUT UP!" Without any warning, Bakugou dove for Uraraka. She barely had time to yelp before he had her pinned to the ground face first, holding one hand down and the other twisted around her back. She could practically feel his smirk on her back as he kept her down with one knee while the other was up to keep his balance. At first Uraraka was shocked by his speed. Then, to Bakugou's shock, she started laughing. She laughed so loud that a few people turned to look in their direction. Bakugou was careful to keep her pinned down while he leaned over to get a better look at her face. "Oi, what's wrong with you?"

"N-nothing! Nothing I'm out, I tap out!" Bakugou snarled. For a moment, she worried that he wasn't going to release her. Then, thankfully, Bakugou loosened his hold enough for Uraraka to sit up, still laughing. He knelt beside her, eyes searching hers for any signs of brain damage. "S-stop looking at me like that Bakugou," She giggled, waving him away. He growled again at the laughter, but was too confused to do anything other than push her arm away.

"What are you laughing at? Are you looking down on me? I beat you!"

"I-I'm not looking down on you," Uraraka explained, taking a few seconds to calm down. "I-It's just…You're so strong Bakugou!"

He puffed out his chest. "F**k yeah." He looked so proud, Uraraka almost felt bad interrupting his thoughts.

"For a moment there, when you moved as fast as that and had my arm behind my back, I was so scared." Bakugou immediately tensed. Uraraka wasn't sure what Bakugou's thoughts were to people fearing him. She assumed that he liked it, since he always wanted others to know he was the strongest. But even if he didn't like it, Uraraka felt she had to say it. "A-and before we fought," She continued, oblivious to how Bakugou was reacting to her confession. "I remembered that time at the bar…you looked absolutely terrifying." Again, Bakugou said nothing. He was eyeing her curiosity with those big, dark red eyes. They could have been the eyes of a killer. The eyes of a monster.

But those weren't the eyes that Uraraka saw.

"But then I thought that was so silly of me!" Uraraka laughed again, startling Bakugou. "You'd never hurt me!"

"What?" Uraraka wasn't sure what Bakugou found more incredulous. Her revelation, or the way she was reacting to it.

"Of course! We've been fighting for nearly two hours Bakugou! We've been living together for a few months now!" Waving to the ground she added, "You even had me pinned to the ground, completely defenseless. You could have really hurt me. But even though I now know that you can, I know you won't." Once the laughter had worked its way through her system, she finally faced Bakugou again. He was stunned at the wide, honest and open smile, full of emotions that he had never seen directed at him before.

"You won't hurt me Bakugou. I know that! I trust you."

He froze. Bakugou stared at her, the shock so great that he couldn't even look away when she stared back. She smiled, warm and gentle under his harsh gaze. Through his shock she could feel him studying her, searching for answers to questions Uraraka couldn't name. Was he surprised that she trusted him? Did he think she was crazy for trusting him? Maybe she was. But despite telling herself this, she just couldn't stop. He'd become a part of her life, one way or another. A piece in her life that she was happy was there.

A whole minute must have passed before Bakugou spoke up. "You…might be right." Those weren't the words he wanted to say. He wanted to protest, call her crazy, and deny it all. There was supposed to be laughs and jeers at the human's stupidity. Instead all he could do was agree. As he stared at this weak, defenseless, insignificant human, he realized that somehow she had wormed her way into her life and was holding on with a strength that he could not comprehend. She was stuck with him. And for better or for worse, he refused to let her get away.

The two of them stared at each other. Uraraka noticed as Bakugou's eyes softened just a fraction, enough so that only she could see the crack behind his cold eyes. Bakugou caught Uraraka's eyes slowly waver, studying his nose, cheeks, then mouth. Only then did the two of them realize just how close they were really sitting, only a hairs-breath away from each other. When they realized this however, neither of them moved. Both were too focused on the other, waiting for them to move. Waiting for them to run away. But neither did.

Slowly, Uraraka tested the waters. She tried leaning closer, just a bit. Just to catch his reaction. Bakugou did not move away. He also leaned closer, perhaps more out of curiosity than understanding. Uraraka's eyes slowly drifted close-

When her phone started ringing at a high volume.

Both of them snapped out of their trance. Uraraka yelped and fell back while Bakugou shot to his feet. "A-ah, sorry Bakugou! I need to take this…" Blushing, flustered, and as bright a shade of red as humans could turn, Uraraka rushed away to pick up the phone call. Bakugou watched her, frozen, not sure how to react or what to do, for what felt like the first time in his life. He'd reacted on instinct, but not his battle instincts. What…was that?

Two aliens over in the locker rooms had reactions that were pretty similar. "Did…all that just happen?" Kirishima had to rub his eyes to make sure he was seeing right. "Even in a battle, he…she's fine? I-I knew he wasn't like what you guys were telling me, but he had every chance…" Aizawa said nothing. He had watched, even recorded, the entire transaction. Though they weren't able to catch what exactly they had said, just the sight of it was enough. The human and Bakugou fought for nearly two hours. Nearly two hours of sparring, and Bakugou hadn't destroyed her. He could, Aizawa was certain. His body was still in camouflage, which meant that his general power was about the same as the average humans. But if he wanted to, Bakugou could transform back and kill her in an instant. But he hadn't.

"That's enough footage," Aizawa stated. Kirishima was startled as Aizawa packed up the recorder and stood from his spot. It was lucky that Bakugou hadn't sensed them, and Aizawa didn't want to press that luck. "We've got all we need."

"Uh, pretty sure our mission was to capture Bakugou and bring him back to headquarters, right?" Aizawa said nothing. Obediently Kirishima followed, watching as Aizawa carefully put the stored video in his pocket while keeping a hand over it for safe-keeping. "What are you going to do with it?"

"Send it to Midnight," Aizawa stated, not bothering to ask what 'it' was. "Maybe she can show it to the council. Convince them to give him a second chance."

Kirishima whistled softly. "That's a pretty big risk Aizawa. If they don't change their mind, they'll know we can find him and order us to capture him right away." Aizawa was silent. They walked for a bit in the quiet, ignoring the humans around them. Kirishima wondered what his actions should be. It was his duty as a soldier to report back if a mission wasn't being fulfilled to the fullest, right? But Kirishima found the honour behind Aizawa's actions worth a potential lecture. "You're risking getting in trouble to give Bakugou another chance?" Kirishima's insides heated up with excitement. "That's real manly of you! I'll follow you through that!"

Despite his annoyance at Kirishima's energy, Aizawa kept a small smile. "Thank you. I appreciate that."

"No problem!" Kirishima boomed. Then, much quieter, he reminded Aizawa. "Endeavor won't like the idea."

Aizawa kept his eyes trained on the path in front of them. "Good thing Endeavor isn't here right now."

Back at the ring, Uraraka tried to ignore Bakugou who was cleaning himself off as she spoke into the phone. "Officer Tokoyami? What do you need?" Bakugou didn't visible react to the name, but he had already honed in on the conversation to overhear what was so important to interrupt their fight.

"I'd like to speak to you about Bakugou," the gravelly voice on the other end of the phone told her. "…Is he there with you?"

Uraraka glanced over at Bakugou. He hadn't turned to her or even acknowledged her presence, which she thought was a good sign. "Yes, he is. How can I help you officer?" Uraraka didn't know much about Bakugou's job, but she was fairly certain that he worked under Tokoyami. What would his boss have to talk to her about? She certainly hoped he wasn't being fired. Just after they celebrated being able to pay the rent early….

There was a pause before he continued, probably debating how to continue knowing Bakugou was in the vicinity. "…A man named Monomo visited yesterday," he stated. Uraraka immediately went into the defensive. Monomo had no reason to go to the police unless there was an issue with his properties. Was he going to try and take the house? Had something happened with the apartment building investigation? "He reported that the first time he went there, Bakugou allegedly threatened him if he ever returned to your property and that the man was extremely violent."

He'd said that? During that time Uraraka hadn't been there? Why? It may have been true, but Monomo had no reason to worry since she'd managed to send the money in on time. Was it another way to try and get the house by attacking Bakugou? "Officer Tokoyami, I'm sure Monomo is overreacting,"

"I don't know about that," Tokoyami stated. "I've heard a number of cases around town Uraraka. A man beating citizens up then taking old bikes, computers and phones. Most of the stolen objects were from dumpsters or the trash, but there were a few that caused suspicion." Her mind flashed to the metal ship Bakugou was building in the backyard. She'd assumed he'd gotten those pieces from a scrap heap. Taking them from an old dumpster wasn't that different, but attacking people? Was that what he was doing when he was…?

"B-But if you really thought it was him, you would have arrested him," Uraraka whispered, hoping that Bakugou couldn't hear her. "Doesn't he work with you? Why don't you talk to him yourself?"

Tokoyami decided it would do no good to mention he only gave the job because Midoriya had requested it. "He does. And we haven't had a single prisoner acting out since he was put on guard. The higher ups love having him here because of that. But the prisoners haven't suddenly acting this way out of respect or a sudden change of heart. They are terrified of him. More terrified than prisoners have been of anyone before Miss Uraraka. And many of these people are hardened criminals who have faced many charges. I don't know what he does to scare them, but they do not question him. They find him dangerous. And I'd have to say I agree." What exactly was he getting at? Uraraka heard something along the lines of a sigh come through the phone. "Miss, while none of this proves anything, it is clear that Mr. Bakugou is…I think it would be best to terminate his stay with you." For a moment there was silence along the phone, both expecting the other to speak but nothing came out. "You live quite a ways from town, alone, with just him. Until we can clear this situation, it may be dangerous to have him stay with you."

"He's not dangerous," Uraraka stated bluntly, catching Tokoyami off-guard. Her voice had a determined tone, unwavering and dark. "I know he won't hurt me.

"Miss Uraraka, what do you really know about your friend?" She opened her mouth to answer, but he continued. "Where is he from? How come he doesn't have any friends or family? Did he have a job before the one here? How come no one in the city recognizes him? Where are the records of even his existence Uraraka? We have found none! Miss Uraraka-" He paused, leaving Uraraka to sweat for a moment. "How come we can't find any evidence that he actually lived in the apartment building?"

Uraraka had no answer.

No evidence? None? But she had found him in that building, she found him herself. He had to live there. Where else could he have lived? Where could he have come from?

Midoriya had told Tokoyami to let it go. But Midoriya had also not sent over the files proving his involvement. Whether Midoriya really had the information or not was questionable- but what was even more suspicious was that Apparently, Midoriya had been looking into him beforehand. "I have no proof to confirm my suspicions," Tokoyami admitted. "Even the citizens who claimed they were attacked and stolen from cannot identify him. They are all too afraid of angering him or having to meet him again. My superiors refuse to chase the matter since nothing of value was stolen and no one was seriously injured. But Miss Uraraka, there is no denying there is something wrong with his story. That the man himself is extremely dangerous. I have read your files, I know you are capable. But as far as I am seeing, the man is as close to a villain as they come. Are you sure you can keep yourself safe with someone who is barely human?"

Barely human?

Some time ago, she may have agreed. When he snarled at everyone just for looking in his direction. When he seemed to go about his life without a caring for anyone around him. She herself had told him that he would get nowhere without realizing the value of others. But then he had shown he cared. He'd gone out of his way to prove to her that he cared, clearing his name of anything other than human in her books. Maybe he would never be a saint. But she knew who she could trust.

"…I trust him officer."

"Miss Uraraka,"

"I understand him," She said. "I know he's not the nicest person in the world. I know he's strong. But I understand that he won't hurt me. Ever. I need to go," Uraraka told him. "I thank you for the concern, but Bakugou has proven to me that he wouldn't hurt me. He's my friend. And he hasn't lied to me once."

"How can you know that?"

Again, she did not have an answer. But she would not turn her back on her friend. "I just- I do. Have a good evening Officer Tokoyami."

"…Good evening Miss Uraraka." Uraraka hung up the phone before Tokoyami could say anything else. Not that she thought he would. It sounded like he had relented- with obvious disapproval. Ochaco huffed indignantly. It was her decision who to be friends with. She wasn't naïve, she knew Bakugou's story didn't add up. But she had faith in her friend.

Turning back to Bakugou, she found that he had already put his shirt back on and was holding her bag. When she trudged over to him, he was watching her with a raised eyebrow. "...who was it?"

"Oh, not important." She tried to brush it off, but Bakugou glared at her. It was a little disturbing how he was able to tell whenever she was hiding something. "Just Officer Tokoyami. Your boss, right?" Uraraka expected some flicker in his eye to show his surprise. But Bakugou just nodded, as if he had expected that. Ochaco was tempted to ask Bakugou about what Tokoyami had brought up.

 _What do you really know about him?_

Not now, she thought to herself. She'd already worn herself out for the day. If it was her friend, she could take a leap of faith for a while. "Let's go," Uraraka stated, wrapping an arm around his without a second thought. "Do you think you could make that chicken-apple-thing that you made a few nights ago? It was delicious!" She cooed happily. Bakugou said nothing. He didn't even put up a fight at the skin-to-skin contact. Instead he turned away from her, and refused to meet her eyes. Not sure why he was acting different, she tried nudging him playfully. "Or, you can pick whatever you want," Uraraka said. "I trust you!"

Before Uraraka's revelation had filled him with warmth.

If he had the regular hearing of a human, he may have felt the same thing.

But since he was able to overhear every word that passed in their conversation, her second revelation did nothing but weigh on his heart.


	13. So What's a Date?

So…What's a Date?

Kirishima could feel the glare boring a hole into the back of his head. It was so concentrated, deep and menacing that he didn't have to turn around to know who it was.

While Kirishima wasn't sure what a 'farmers market' was, he was pretty sure it was an awful place to die.

Apparently the human event that involved putting up stands and selling specialized goods and foods only came to their location once a month, and every time Jiro would go to get some indie band music and foods on sale. While they were there they had run into Uraraka and Bakugou who had apparently dragged him along to find some cheaper foods. It was supposed to be a nice date with Kirishima and Jiro, but eventually the two girls had started talking and the romantic group of two had become an ordinary group of four. Not that Kirishima minded. He loved spending time with Jiro and if she wanted more humans there then hey, the more the merrier. Aizawa and Present Mic would probably be happy to hear that he'd gotten to spy on Bakugou too. The only problem was that the suspect in question was currently glaring at Kirishima so intensely it was like he wanted his head on a stick.

And Kirishima had no idea what he had done to deserve such treatment.

From underneath Kirishima's arm, Jiro caught Bakugou glaring at him. "Hey, if you're going to glare at my boyfriend, do it somewhere else so we don't have to feel that menacing aura that comes with it." Bakugou only spared a quick glower in her direction before turning back to Kirishima. Jiro on the other hand was already the same familiar shade of pink she turned whenever she called Kirishima her boyfriend. "W-What's up with him?" Jiro asked as she popped a chip into her mouth. Uraraka shrugged, already accustomed to not always understanding Bakugou's intentions. Kirishima on the other hand was silently thanking whoever created him that they hadn't given him the same sweat pours humans had when they got nervous. If he did, he was certain he would be sweating enough to fill the entire planet with water.

 _What did I do? Did he figure me out? Is my cover blown? Oh please, at least confront me when Jiro isn't here. I don't want her to figure it out like that._

Jiro had started calling Kirishima 'boyfriend' only a few days ago, some weeks after they'd sent the video of Bakugou sparring with Uraraka. He had been calling her 'girlfriend' for quite some time. She had always turned red which he had liked, but she'd said stuff like 'it's too soon!' and 'I'm not sure yet,' which made Kirishima fret. Only when they were playing videogames and Jiro offhandedly called him her boyfriend did Kirishima know everything was fine. Jiro had been the brightest shade of red when he'd started skipping around and doing a happy dance, saying it wasn't a big deal. But Kirishima thought it was. That meant she was his lover, right? Just the thought made him smile.

Then immediately frown when he realized he would have to tell Aizawa and Present Mic eventually. Or reveal himself to Jiro.

With a shake of his head Kirishima tried to douse the fire. That could wait. He refused to ruin what time he did have with her. Just enjoy the time now…A time that would be enjoyed much better if he wasn't having to deal with the very creature that was the countdown to enjoying his time staring at him. Kirishima squeezed the arm around Jiro's shoulder, trying to ignore Bakugou with little success.

Uraraka on the other hand caught the sight of a small booth that caught her attention. "Oooh, Jiro! It's those strawberry cheesecake cookies! Let's get some!" Jiro's eyes lit up at the sight and Kirishima could tell that she was trying not to lick her lips. Without much argument Jiro allowed Uraraka to drag her out of Kirishima's grasp. Kirishima was about to follow her when he felt the claws of death clamp onto his shoulder.

"I need to talk to you," Bakugou growled, sending Kirishima's thoughts into a hurricane. _What? Now? He must have figured it out!_ Kirishima thought the organs in his body were going to freeze up when Jiro paused to come to Kirishima's defense.

Narrowing her eyes she moved closer to Kirishima's side, ready to defend him if needed. "What do you want from him?" After the multiple conversations about Bakugou Jiro and Kirishima had had, Kirishima knew that she was starting to warm up to him. But she still would watch him out of the corner of her eye suspiciously. Not that Kirishima blamed her.

"It's none of your business short-hair," Bakugou barked at her. Kirishima had to hide his sigh of relief. At least she wouldn't have to find out like this. "I need to talk to the hair-for-brains alone." Aw, he gave Kirishima a nickname!

If he had been found out, Kirishima wanted to at hide it from Jiro just a little longer. "I-It's fine Jiro! I'll meet you over at the booth in a bit." Jiro frowned skeptically, eyeing Bakugou like she was his judge, jury and executioner. But Kirishima made sure to keep a reassuring smile on his face so that Jiro would at least believe he knew what he was doing. Even if he didn't believe that.

After a moment Jiro finally gave in. "Fine. Be right back." Jiro jumped onto her tiptoes to give Kirishima a quick kiss on the cheek. Kirishima's eyes widened, but he doubted it was anything compared to the blush on Jiro's face as she spun around and sprinted away.

While watching her go, Bakugou's glare at Kirishima hardened. "Wipe that stupid smile off your face," Bakugou ordered. Instantly Kirishima soured up, keeping a careful eye on Bakugou.

"Right. So…What was it you wanted to talk about?" In his head he started plotting escape plans or ways to contact Aizawa if something went wrong. _We should have done something after sending the video,_ Kirishima hissed in his head. _Then again…it wasn't like they had that option._

In the time that had passed since spying on Bakugou, they hadn't gotten Endeavor's response from the video. It had been radio silence ever since it was sent, which caused Aizawa to worry. Kirishima had tried to assure him that maybe it meant the council was taking their time to decide what to do after the new information. But the fact that Endeavor, the general who had been hard-pressed on bringing the criminal in right away for his execution wasn't responding? Even Kirishima wasn't hopeful enough to think that was a good sign. Aizawa had insisted they carry on as normal, try to get more information and not jump to conclusions.

But had that backfired? Had Bakugou figured out who Kirishima really was? Kirishima waited impatiently for the hammer that would fall on his parade. Bakugou narrowed his eyes at him as the tension built so high that Kirishima forgot to breathe.

"…How did you get your human to act different around you?"

…If that was his way of leading towards Kirishima's ultimate demise, he didn't get it.

When Kirishima was so startled he didn't answer, Bakugou snorted in derision. "Different. Can your puny human mind not notice the change?" Human. Human mind. He was safe. Kirishima had to hold his breath to hide the exhale of relief. Bakugou assumed Kirishima didn't understand and went on to explain. "Your weak human acts different around you than mine does. She smiles at you all the time. You both are in physical contact nearly all the time. She knows what you want to eat without you saying anything. You can figure out where she wants to go without a word, and I know that these humans aren't able to read minds. So how did you get her acting this way?" Kirishima decided that Bakugou was a really lucky guy that he hadn't gone to a real human about this, or he'd have a lot of questions and no answers.

Even with Bakugou's list, it took Kirishima a few minutes to figure out what he was talking about. "Wait…that's because…do you mean the fact that she's my lover? Can you…not tell that?"

The suggestion make Bakugou gnaw his teeth together. "SHUT UP! LIKE I CARE ABOUT STUPID HUMAN ALLIANCES!"

"Alliance?" Kirishima tilted his head to the side in confusion. "Dude, what do you think lovers for human means?"

Lovers. Bakugou remembered the pony-tailed human saying that it was associated with liking the other, not an alliance. He hadn't bothered to hear more at the time, but later he wished he had gotten more information. It was clear that if the redhead and his human were lovers and that it was not made for an alliance, then it was different then what Bakugou assumed. If that was it Bakugou wouldn't give a second thought to it. But apparently it was valuable information for him.

"…It has…something to do with liking the other being." Oh gosh. Just how long had Bakugou been in those labs?

"Yeah," Kirishima spoke slowly to avoid pissing Bakugou off. "Having feelings for them. You know, liking them romantically? Wanting to be with them?" It was clear from Bakugou's expression that he did not understand. "Dude, Jiro's acting that way around me because we're in a romantic relationship. That's what people do when they like each other that way."

"…Fine. Whatever. How do you get them to do that?"

Kirishima was befuddled. "What do you mean?"

"How would I get Uraraka to act the same way Jiro does?" He growled. After a moment he added, "But not the way your human does. I don't want that woman, I want mine."

Slowly, Kirishima's eyes began to widen to such an extent that if a human saw him, they would have assumed his eyes were going to roll out of his head. "You…you want to date Uraraka?" Kirishima wasn't even sure what to ask first. While he hadn't believed it would happen, Kirishima had been thinking of this theory for a while. Kirishima had thought he'd gotten it right when Uraraka and Bakugou had sparred together. It looked like they were about to kiss near the end- or, at least Uraraka was going to kiss him. Did Bakugou know what a kiss was? Not all species of aliens used that particular method to show affection. And Bakugou…Well, Kirishima had never been to the planet he was born in, and he had absolutely no idea how he had been raised. But that had been just a theory! The crazy, murderous psychopath named 'king explosion murder' wanted to go on a date? A very human, very peaceful, romantic date? With a human? All Kirishima could think of asking was, "Why?"

"…She smiled for me once," Bakugou admitted. After a second he grinned and crossed his arms proudly. "MY smile. I made her smile, no one else!" The spark in his joy faded when he started scowling at Kirishima again. "The short-haired human smiles at you all the time. I want my human to do that. And I want her to be looking at me like none of these other petty humans exist." Kirishima shivered at the gleam in Bakugou's eye when he said that. _I hope his plan B isn't to just get rid of all the other humans so she only sees him…_

"That's…a little on the creepy side Bakugou. But that's okay, you'll figure it out in time," He encouraged with a hand on his shoulder. Bakugou narrowed his eyes at him so Kirishima slowly pulled his hand away. "So what you're saying is that you want to be with Uraraka even when you don't know how." Bakugou snarled at his interpretation, but cut himself off when he saw that Kirishima was smiling. "And you admitted that to me, even when you hate people thinking less of you? Man, that's really manly of you Bakugou!"

Truth was, Bakugou's intentions weren't as selfless as that. Bakugou had been feeling sick lately after the reminder that Uraraka trusted him completely. He wanted to fix that. And lately the best way to calm him down was make her smile. Since destroying the world wasn't an option yet, he'd go with that plan. Kirishima, who was unaware of this, went on to think. "Hm…So you need to find a way to get in a romantic relationship with her."

"How do I do that?"

"Well right now, it seems like she thinks you're just friends," Kirishima mused. "So you've got to do something to make sure she knows it's not like that." It was a good thing Bakugou had come to Kirishima about this. Another human may have thought Bakugou was losing his mind. "Usually human's court each other by going on these things called dates! You should ask Uraraka on a date!"

His companion just gave him a deadpan stare. "What's a date?"

Oh, right. Not human. "It's, ah, it's a time where humans do stuff together to spend time as a couple and get to know one another."

"I already know her," Bakugou insisted.

"Sure, but it's different with a date. You already know her as a friend, now you've got to know her in a completely different relationship." Kirishima rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Why don't you…go to a music store? Or play videogames at her house? That's what I did with Jiro!" Kirishima was thankful he'd finally figured out the proper names for those two things.

"Uraraka doesn't like either of those stupid human things," Bakugou stated. He didn't have a clue what videogames were, and while a 'music store' was easy to interpret, Bakugou had never heard Uraraka talk about one.

"Well figure out something that she does like to do then do it. No wait! Don't ask her! Surprise her, humans like that!"

"Eh? How the f #k am I supposed to do that?"

That required some thought. "Do you know any other humans who are good at planning dates?"

…

* * *

"Bakugou, where are we going?"

"Dunno. Just stop asking questions." Uraraka pouted. If her guide didn't know where they were going, then there was a good chance that they were in trouble.

It had been the strangest evening Uraraka could remember. As soon as they had gotten home from the farmers market, Bakugou had left the house saying not to follow him. The next thing Uraraka knew was that Momo was calling her sounding jubilant, saying she would plan everything and not to worry about paying for it. When Uraraka had tried to ask what she was talking about, Momo had just giggled and told her to wear nice clothes that evening. Confused but curious, Uraraka had picked out a nice black top and a long pink skirt and waited downstairs for Momo to arrive. When she got there she was shocked to find Bakugou staring at her with wide eyes. He was wearing a nice pair of pants and a red button-up shirt, though the buttons were done wrong and it wasn't tucked in. Before Uraraka had the chance to even ask Bakugou recovered and nodded towards the door and told her to hurry up.

Outside, Uraraka had gaped at the car that was waiting for them. She recognized it as Momo's car, the driver one who would bring her around the country when she was working on a case. But why was he picking them up? Momo had certainly gone all out! But for what, Uraraka wasn't sure. "Do you know what all of this is about?" Maybe Momo was planning something for her friends, but she didn't realize Bakugou even knew Momo.

"A date."

"What?" Uraraka swirled in her seat to stare at him. "A date? For who?" She could only think about Momo's crush on Todoroki. Had she finally asked him out? Wait…that wouldn't make sense, why would she have gotten Uraraka and Bakugou to come?

Bakugou turned his red eyes on her like he couldn't be more disappointed. "Don't be an idiot. It's our date, obviously." He shook his head in annoyance while Uraraka's jaw dropped open. "Humans. That should have been obvious."

"O-Our date!" Uraraka squealed. "Bakugou, you didn't ask me on a date!"

Bakugou tilted his head to the side in confusion. "So what?"

"So!" Where exactly was he from again? Narnia? Wonderland? Some other fictional place that didn't have human cultural standards? "You have to ask me to go on the date before the actual date Bakugou!"

That time he turned to give her his unbridled attention. "EH? Hair-for-brains or that pony-tailed girl didn't say anything about that! Why would I waste my time doing that? You want to be here, right?" Uraraka spluttered indignantly. So cocky! Honestly, didn't he understand people at all? You can't just take someone on a date without them knowing it's a date!

"I-I don't know! I never got the chance to think about it!"

"What's there to think about?" Bakugou snarled.

"I-I…" Uraraka had absolutely no idea how she was supposed to be responding to this situation. "H-how come Momo called me though? And why are we in her car?"

With an annoyed huff he crossed his arms and leaned further back in his seat. "I went to her to ask what you'd want to do. The human was so fixed on talking about relationships so I decided to use that." With that nice way to refer to her friends… "She said she'd set up the whole thing as long as I promised to make sure you had a 'lovely time' or whatever. I don't know what the heck that's supposed to mean. How could time with me be anything but awesome…?" Bakugou went onto rant while Uraraka tried not to sigh. So that was what happened. Momo was a romantic and she always was willing to help out in her friend's love-lives. While Uraraka was thankful to Yaoyorozu for setting up a nice event, she was inwardly cringing knowing that after she'd have to give Momo the full story…Including the part where Bakugou hadn't thought it necessary to ask Uraraka first.

Finally the car came to a halt. Uraraka and Bakugou both turned to the doorway as the driver opened the door for them. "We have arrived. The table has already been reserved for you. Do send for me when you are done your meal." Another person coming to serve her in such a fancy way was so strange Uraraka could barely nod in response. Momo really was a rich girl!

Bakugou on the other hand just walked out as if that was the exact treatment he expected. Uraraka rushed to follow him and found herself gaping in shock at the sight around them. It was one of the fancier restaurants, a place Uraraka had only been to twice in her lifetime. Once at Momo's birthday when she treated all of her friends and another time when her father had gotten a big bonus and wanted to treat her and her mother. Uraraka's mouth always watered at the memory. Even if the 'date' went wrong, Uraraka would have to thank Momo for getting them such a nice place to spend the evening.

With a great smile on her face Uraraka wrapped an arm around Bakugou's automatically. "Oh wow! Bakugou, you have to try the steak, it's really good. You'll love it!" Bakugou stopped his mumbling about annoying rolling metal boxes made by humans to just nod carelessly. They were supposed to be on a date, couldn't Bakugou act like it? Well, if he hadn't even known that he was supposed to ask her, maybe he didn't know how to act on a date. But Uraraka wouldn't let that bother her! Whether it was a date or not, she was determined to enjoy the evening!

As the two of them walked inside, Uraraka whispered in Bakugou's ear. "I would have said yes."

"Huh?"

"If you'd actually asked me on a date, I would have said yes."

There was a pause as Uraraka let that sink in. For a few moments Bakugou looked so stunned that she would want to go on a romantic outing with him that she was worried he would remain frozen like that. Then, just as quickly as the shock has appeared, he returned back to his normal state. "Of course you would have," Bakugou huffed. Uraraka giggled to herself and pulled in closer. She didn't have to see his face to know he was trying to hide his embarrassment.

When they were seated at their table, they both ordered quickly. Uraraka couldn't wait for the food and Bakugou said he was starving. As they waited for the food, Uraraka decided to try and make some conversation. It was supposed to be a date, wasn't it? "So…how is everything going at work?"

"Huh?" Bakugou looked up at her from the swords on the wall he had been staring intently at. "Feh, those weak humans are pitiful. I barely got to look at them and they're crying."

… _Cause THAT'S not terrifying!_ Uraraka shivered. _Isn't he supposed to be a guard or something?_ "That's…nice." Not sure where to go from that, Uraraka tried something else. "How is your ship going?"

Bakugou's nose scrunched up in annoyance. "I showed you my ship yesterday. Why are you asking about stuff you already know about?"

"I don't know," Uraraka sighed in defeat. "We're supposed to talk on a date."

"Why?"

"To get to know each other," she answered automatically. Bakugou paused to ponder that.

"The red-headed moron said something about that to…" Bakugou mused. Slowly he leaned closer into the table, eyeing her suspiciously. "Is there anything about you that I don't know?"

Uraraka shrugged. "Probably. I don't tell you everything."

"EH?" they both jumped in their chairs, equally startled. "Why the f #k not?"

"There are some things that you don't tell your friends!" Uraraka insisted when she recovered her nerves. "Have you told me everything?" Bakugou begins to feel guilt, remembering the time ago when Uraraka had backed him up against Tokoyami. He kind of wished she hadn't. He hadn't asked her to. He hadn't asked her to trust him so much, it wasn't his fault. But she did. She trusted him. He would keep her safe. Heck, she was smiling again! So…why did he still feel so awful inside? Stupid human really did poison him!

If these human relationships meant telling the other everything, did that mean he had to tell her that he wasn't from earth? He had been around his human for months now and he knew for certain she was not ready to hear about alien life…heck, who cared about the rest of the aliens in the world? What would she do about Bakugou? Would she get angry? Would she still accept him? Since…since when did he care? He was lord explosion murder! If she rejected him after finding out, that was her problem!

His oblivious human took a silent sip of her drink while thinking. "I'm really surprised though. Why would you want to go on a date with me?"

Bakugou answered absentmindedly. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I mean, why?" Uraraka threw her hands up in the air. "Up until now I was under the impression that you thought of me as a friend, nothing more. Well, other than-" A flash memory of the near kiss ran through her mind. Her cheeks turned a bright shade of red as she tried the wave the memory away. "I-I mean, y-y-you know!"

"Why are you stuttering?" Bakugou asked, one eyebrow raised.

"N-no reason!" Uraraka cleared her throat…and took a long sip of her drink. "You don't seem like the kind of guy who is interested in dating." Ochaco silently thanked the world when the waiter returned with their food. It gave her some time to hopefully recover and think of a different topic of conversation before Bakugou decided to dwell on what she said. As she was focused on her meal though, Bakugou was uncharacteristically silent.

After not even taking a bite out of his food, Bakugou spoke up. "I am not interested in dating." With another pause he added, "I'm only interested in dating you."

Uraraka wished she hadn't taken a bite out of her food when she choked. "Wh-what?"

"Dating is stupid," Bakugou told her plainly. "It's the complicated human custom that I don't care about and is way too difficult to understand. 'Dating' is useless, annoying and I couldn't care less about it. Especially since I don't want to learn anymore about courting customs than I have to. I've got much better things to do with my time." Uraraka wasn't sure if he was indirectly insulting her or if she should agree with him. The process of dating was absolutely AWEFUL.

"Okay, so…why did you ask me out?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Isn't that f##$(%g obvious?" When Uraraka didn't respond, Bakugou scowled again. "Because I want you to be mine." Uraraka froze. Bakugou grabbed his fork and starting poking at his food, talking offhanded like he already expected her to understand. "Human customs are stupid, but you aren't. I want you to look at me all the time the way that short-haired chick does the hair-for-brains. I want your smiles to be not just for me but made by me." Finally Bakugou looked up so his blood red eyes met her honey brown ones. "I take what I want. And if I have to do stupid stuff to get you, then I'll do it." Both of them stared at each other. Uraraka stared into his dark, red eyes, searching for any sign of a lie or deception. But Bakugou had none of it. For the first time, truly the first time, Bakugou showed complete genuine honesty in his gaze.

"So let's get this stupid date over with. Eat the food, it had better be good." Without another word Bakugou dove into the food. From the way he devoured it, he had to at least approve of the taste. Uraraka didn't move for a moment, stunned into silent at the utter honest behind his words. And what they truly meant for her. Her chubby cheeks were a light shade of pink as she absorbed his words.

Then, slowly, a smile graced her lips. "…Okay," she said. "And just so you know, I kinda like you to. Maybe for the next date you can actually ask me before we go."

That made Bakugou freeze. Another date. Did that mean he won? She chose him knowing…no. No, wait. She didn't know everything. As long as she didn't know everything…she was not really choosing him.

Tell her. He should tell her. What did he care if she said no? What did he care if she didn't like it? He could just kill her. Like he gave a S #T about what some stupid, weak, insignificant human-

"Bakugou?" Uraraka leaned forward on the table when she noticed Bakugou had frozen. "Are you okay?"

"…Yeah."

…

* * *

"I'm heading out Bakugou!"

Said alien grunted in response. "Fine. Hurry back."

Uraraka giggled to herself. The morning after their date Uraraka was in too much of a rush for there to be awkwardness. Bakugou watched her as she ran around, gathering her equipment for her job. All he knew about her job was that it involved fighting fire, getting people out of destruction areas and knowing how to fight…Was she fighting fire creatures then cleaning up after their messes?

Before she left, Uraraka rushed over to Bakugou at the table. "I'll see you later!" Bakugou was shocked when she wrapped her arms around him in a hug. Without waiting for his response she pulled away and laughed as she ran. "Try not to burn down the house while I'm gone!"

"Oi, what's that supposed to mean round-" but he heard the door click shut before he could finish. With a scowl and a few choice curses under his breath he went back to the meal he was cooking for that night. As he did, he thought about his human's strange action that morning.

It wasn't the first time she had hugged him, but it was the first time it felt so…casual. Normal. As if she was making it a regular day tradition. He hadn't broken his human again, had he? Was it a part of the human courtship? He supposed…It wasn't too bad. He could get used to it if she really needed it. His hands ghosted around the area that her small arms had tried to trap his chest. She had been in quite a good mood that morning. And the night after their date. That was a good sign, right?

But it would be ruined. Did he care if she was a little scared? When he admitted to being lord explosion murder? It wasn't like her world would have any information on him. Maybe she would be a little freaked out, but so what? Bakugou could just take her and wait for her to calm down. Heck, after a while maybe he could use his human to try and take over worlds with him. If she needed the weird house, he'd find a way to keep it. It couldn't be that-

There was a banging on the door. Bakugou looked up at the sound in confusion. Had Uraraka returned so quickly? Had she forgotten those metal pieces that opened the doors? She'd done that once before. The banging continued as Bakugou trudged his way to the front door. "Shut up Uraraka, I'm f #*$&^g coming." While stomping the banging continued, and Bakugou's rage boiled with every beat. Finally he got to the doors and threw it open with a snarl. "COULD YOU KEEP IT THE F #K DOWN YOU-" His voice cut off.

Alien General Endeavor stood at Uraraka's front door with 15 alien soldiers, all guns pointed on Bakugou. "Prisoner Lord Explosion Murder," Endeavor recited with a cocky smile. "You have the right to remain silent."


	14. We Had a Good Run

We had a Good Run

The fourth Alien only had time to let out a squeal of fear before Bakugou swung his tail around and slice his chest open. If the alien had not been one made completely of stone, his guts would have poured out onto the floor.

Bakugou, now back in his original form, leered down from the staircase at the 11 remaining soldiers who trained their lasers on him. All the soldiers shivered with a familiar fear at the sight of Bakugou in all his glory. The sweat pants remained mostly intact, but the black shirt had been shredded so it may as well be a tank-top now. His spokes tore through the back, his forearms expanded to weaponry size, the spikes returned on his feet, his tail swung around ready to strike, the darkness around his eyes highlighted the red and his smile was wide, showing off the pointed teeth that were ready to bite their heads off. A few of them had fought him before at the court. Those who hadn't heard all the stories. All of them were equally terrified. Those who had knees were shaking while those who had hearts felt them beating faster than the speed of light.

The only one who showed no fear was the general they all followed. "Just give it up monster," He jeered at Bakugou who narrowed his eyes at him. "You are outnumbered. The court knows where you are. And in only a few short hours, reinforcements will arrive to back us up. There is nowhere on this insignificant planet that you can hide." He himself remained unarmed, nothing but the fire building in his arms. Bakugou may have had explosions, but Endeavor had complete control over what should be an untameable element. A fire that remained trapped under his skin with no choice but to bend to his will. Bakugou on the other hand allowed his explosions to run freely as they liked. That would not do him good in what should have been a strategic fight.

"How did you find me?" Bakugou growled at the aliens after a pause. A few of them jumped. The enemy they had been told to catch wasn't supposed to be able to speak.

While the general's eyes narrowed, he did not falter. "This isn't my first trip to this low class planet," Endeavor admitted. "Thanks to the video Aizawa sent me, it wasn't hard to track you down." Endeavor stated. Bakugou tried not to show his surprise at his statement. _What? Aizawa?_ He was on earth? He had recorded him? For how long? How long had he been watching him? And if that was true, why hadn't he brought him in already? "And now that we have you, it's time to finish the job that should have been done ages ago." Endeavor stepped forward, his spirit charged and ready for action. "You are coming with us, abomination."

The 'abomination' was still stuck on Aizawa watching him. For some reason he hadn't done anything to interfere with his life on earth. Why not? More importantly, how? Had he been watching him through the humans around him? Endeavor wasn't going to give him any answers, that was sure. Unfortunately Bakugou had a number of questions.

One thing he knew for certain? "This is Uraraka's freaking house," Bakugou growled at them. "You f ($%s ain't welcome!"

With a roar Bakugou launched himself from the stairs. Immediately lasers were fired into the air, all hitting the space Bakugou was only seconds before. With the first jump he smashed two aliens into the ground making the whole building shake. Another soldier shot as his shoulder, but the power setting was nowhere near enough to even break his skin. With a snarl Katsuki's tail shot out and wrapped around the aliens leg. She let out a loud scream as she was thrown into two other soldiers. Before going after the others, Bakugou momentarily contemplated whether it was a better idea to kill them or just knock them out. Then he quickly decided against death.

 _I ain't got time for you to f ($*% &%g die a $&%($e, _Bakugou thought to himself. _Uraraka's going to be pissed if she sees alien guts on the carpet._ He opted instead to give them both hard smacks on the head, nearly denting the floor as they were forced into unconsciousness. Within the next second he lifted his arms and sent two explosions from both hands towards the remaining guards. All were blown back, either hitting the walls or flying through doorways. Bakugou would have congratulated himself for a job well done- if he didn't catch one of the soldiers trying to get in the kitchen for cover. When he rushed in after him, he found the alien depositing his fried weapon on the oven and counter.

 _Oh you dare-_ "NOT ON THE OVEN YOU STUPID M #(%*$&S!" Rage coursed through him as he swung his leg out so the spike slashed at his enemies feet. The alien cried out before falling to his knees, giving Bakugou the chance to grab the man by the face. With a powerful swung he threw the man into the glass window, breaking it in an instant and sending the alien toppling into the back yard. _The b )#*%d had better not have hit my ship,_ Bakugou thought.

However he wasn't given much time to dwell on it when Endeavor tore his way into the kitchen. The alien's frame was too big for Uraraka's house, and Bakugou inwardly fumed when the walls were thrown into disarray to make way for his size. "Rotten little lab rat," Endeavor muttered as he turned on Bakugou. "You are delaying the inevitable. You really think you can get away from me?"

"Did before," Bakugou scoffed, though in reality all his senses were on high alert. Bakugou hated the man almost as much as he hated Overhaul. But that didn't change the fact that he had strong battle instincts. Perhaps better than Bakugou's. Not that he would ever admit that.

"Why do you resist?" Katsuki was baffled by the question. So baffled he paused what was going to be a full-frontal attack to hear what he had to say. "What life do you think you can have if you get out of here? You can try and conquer the world all you want, but what good will that do you?" Bakugou was stunned. Endeavor used the opportunity to slowly shift around the furniture, closing in on Bakugou when he was distracted. "What do you want to gain when you destroy and conquer everything? Power? Wealth? Fame? Or just the sick satisfaction of seeing your victims die in your arms?"

"Shut up," Bakugou snarled at him, arms raised to block any punches. "You don't know a d #m about me."

"I know you want to win. Monsters like you don't care about anything else."

"So what if I do?" his enemy countered, not noticing as Endeavor took a few steps closer. "What's wrong with that?"

"Because you never will," Endeavor answered. "Abominations like you will never be satisfied. All you want is to destroy and ruin the lives of good people."

"Shut up!" Bakugou repeated, the bitter rage rising as Endeavor unconsciously struck deep chords in Bakugou's heart. "You don't know what the f! k I want!"

"Is that to insinuate that you could desire a regular life? Don't make me laugh." Bakugou told himself to move. He had caught Endeavor moving closer when he finally took a step around the counter. But his words kept Bakugou frozen in place. His heart ached with a pain that Bakugou did not understand. "You are a monster! A weapon of mass destruction, but nothing else! You were not designed to have a life, you were designed to take lives." His words rung true in Bakugou's mind. Overhaul had told him the same thing millions of times. Bakugou had accepted it without question and had no problem with that reality. But since he'd seen other worlds…the words did not hold the same warmth they used to.

 _…Uraraka…_

"Look at you!" Endeavor threw his hand out towards Bakugou, making him hiss and charge his arms for battle. But Endeavor did not attack. "Everything about you was created for battle! Your body can do nothing but destroy. How can someone like you even deserve anything more than death?" Bakugou flinched. Visibly flinched, much to his chagrin. Endeavor noticed. There was a small smile as he moved even closer, encouraged by Bakugou's momentary hesitation. "You have no place in this world. You have no place in any world!"

"Do you think any sane being would trust you if they knew what you are? No! And they shouldn't. Because you are nothing but a danger to good people who actually deserve a chance at life!" Bakugou wanted to say it wasn't true. He wanted to spit in Endeavors face, or laugh and tell him he was an idiot. There were people that trusted him. Foolish idiots, but they trusted him. Uraraka had said so herself, hadn't she?

But maybe that was why he hadn't revealed himself. Because deep down, he knew that if he did, she would take that trust away. That Endeavor was right. If Uraraka knew the truth, she would turn him away, wouldn't she?

"Stop being a fool little creature," Endeavor spat. "You are a villain. It's up to heroes like me to take villains like you down. And good always wins in the end." Good? Bakugou was sure he wasn't good. He'd damaged, attacked, mutilated and burned enough people to know that for certain.

But a villain? He was built to be such. That was his whole goal in life. But originally, being the villain had never been his goal. Before, when he was a child, before Overhaul got his hands on him, he hated villains as much as they did. But then he was built to be different. Now, now that he was free, did it have to be that way? Did he even get any say in the matter?

That was the moment Bakugou began to wonder if he would ever be truly free to make that decision.

There was barely a meter in-between Bakugou and his enemy. Endeavor sneered, practically tasting his victory. "Just give it up," he ordered, starting fires in his hands. "It would be better for everyone if you just disappeared." There was a moment of silence where Bakugou said nothing. In a flash, Endeavor swung his arms around, reaching out to grab the creature in front of him.

But Bakugou was faster.

His eyes flashed. Quickly he ducked underneath his arms and jumped back a safe distance. Endeavor started to sun forward, but before he could, Bakugou lifted his own arms. Ones armed and sparking with nitroglycerin. Endeavor's eyes widened.

"DIE YOU F (#$*%&G S *#&%(&S!"

The boom was so loud it could be heard from miles away. Humans all stopped what they were doing to turn in the direction of the sound, even though none of them had any chance to see what was going on. Only a number of aliens could see the true damage. Aliens such as Bakugou, who after the dust settled, stared around him in disbelief.

His explosion. It was stronger than he meant it to be. Too…too strong for earthen materials to…

"Like I said," Endeavor coughed his lungs clear of the dust and debris. "You're good for nothing but destruction." Bakugou said nothing. He knew he couldn't. He didn't care about what Endeavor would say to him. But he could already see another's pain in his mind…

"Get him!" Bakugou dodged another laser as it clipped the spikes on his back. One of Endeavors soldiers stood with his laser as others around him started to emerge. With a hiss, Bakugou spun on his feet and launched himself out of the house, sprinting into the forest. "After him!" Endeavor shouted. "Do not let the prisoner escape!"

* * *

"He actually said that?"

Uraraka nodded, trying to hide her blushing face with her hands. "Y-yeah. I can't believe it either." She was not the only one.

Todoroki had come to the firehouse that morning to make sure Uraraka was okay. When Momo had explained what had happened the night before he had shot out of the police office and ran straight for the fire house. Not only was he surprised to find her alive and well, but she was absolutely jubilant. She and Jiro were doing some training while talking about the evening she had with Bakugou. And from the sounds of it, not only had no one died, but Uraraka actually enjoyed the evening. "It was the last thing I expected to hear," she admitted while covering her blushing cheeks. "Especially from him. He's never so…emotional, you know?"

"Well, in fairness, it doesn't sound like he was being emotional," Jiro corrected. "It sounds more like he was being straightforward. He always seemed like the kind of person who would say what he felt no matter what."

At that observation Uraraka let out a deep sigh. "Both a curse and a miracle," She muttered. Todoroki listened on, lips pursed as he wrapped himself up in his thoughts. Uraraka noticed and turned to face him. "Todoroki? Is everything alright?"

"…Fine," he stated. While he had been reluctant earlier to accept the idea, he decided that perhaps Midoriya had been right. While Bakugou had seemed violent at first, it was clear Uraraka had no issue with him. If that was true and Bakugou was respecting her…then Todoroki supposed he may have overreacted.

However…that still depended on a few things…

"Uraraka," Todoroki started. "Has Bakugou told you,"

Blaring alarms cut him off.

Immediately the firehouse was awake. People jumped to their feet and sprinted through the hallways, leaving their belongings behind them. Todoroki was startled by the change and had to press his body against the wall to avoid being trampled when both Jiro and Uraraka forgot their conversation and went to work. From the hallway, Todoroki heard Shinsou yelling out on the speakers. "Everyone immediately report to the firetrucks. There is a reported explosion at Uravity road house 1516. There are many cars overturned and damage around the area. All fighters, proceed…" Shinsou continued to repeat his message a few times until he was sure he was heard. Todoroki, after catching the address, decided to take his car and drive over.

Only as he passed them did he hear Jiro whisper to Uraraka.

"Uraraka," Jiro said, a panicked note in her voice. "Isn't that your address?"

* * *

"HEEEEEEY! What was that?"

Aizawa grumbled as he dragged himself off of the ground. Their devices had all fallen to the floor as a loud explosion had shook their whole ship. Present Mic had fallen on his back, Aizawa luckily only fell out of his chair while Kirishima had managed to fall on his knees. With wide eyes he rushed to the window and stared in the direction the explosion had come from. From above the trees Kirishima could only see a long pillar of smoke coming from the distance. "That level of an explosion…it couldn't have been earth tech, could it?"

"Not unless this country just happened to start a war while we happened to be here," Aizawa grunted. When he passed the window and saw the smoke, there was a light of fear in his eyes. "Bakugou…"

Kirishima twisted around to face him. "You don't think Bakugou did this, do you? Why, after this long?"

"I don't know," Aizawa muttered. _Was it a mistake not taking him in right away?_ He wondered, hoping he was wrong. "Everyone, let's head in that direction," Aizawa ordered while grabbing a black cloak. "We need to see what that was."

* * *

The police office was in chaos. Only a few minutes had passed when a large explosion had shook the building. Wherever it had come from was far enough so that the aftershock didn't cause any damage. However almost immediately after the phones were swamped with calls. Operators and 911 phone responders were taking call after call as agents were sent all around the city one after another. Tokoyami barely had time to grab his jacket before he rushed towards the cars. Momo and Midoriya both ran into him as he rushed forward. "Tokoyami!" Midoriya exclaimed. "What's going on?"

"There was an explosion that has caused damage all over town," Tokoyami explained.

"Oh my gosh," Momo gasped while covering her mouth in shock.

"Where do they think the explosion came from?" Midoriya asked.

"Majority of witnesses have been saying it was somewhere down Uravity line." Both the lawyer and the security worker tensed with fear.

 _Uraraka…_

"Take us with you Tokoyami!" Midoriya insisted. "Please!"

* * *

What do you do when something that was once there is not?

Something that was once such a constant piece in your life suddenly disappears. A part of your own world that you know will not be the same without it. When something that was once a constant presence in your life, something that you held dear and true to your heart is snatched away just because the world is oh so cruel?

Can you think about that moment? Yes? No? You probably wouldn't want to.

Because then you'd feel like Uraraka did when she saw that her home was gone.

Rubble. Concrete. Pieces of wood strewn across the ground. The place where the stairs used to be collapsed with only a few large stones towered there. The frame around the edges was thrown to the side and the windows were shattered. The roof which was supposed to be at the top of the house was where the bottom floor used to be. Some remnants of books and pages were scorched and burned to decorate the horrifying scene. Destruction like this was not uncommon in Uraraka's line of work. She'd seen many homes destroyed.

But she doubted any of those homes meant as much to the owners as her old, run down blue one meant to her.

Her knees stung when she hit the grass. The voices of her friends at her side and the sight of firefights trying to push their way through the rubble was all a blur. She could only see the place where her home used to be, and the destruction that replaced it. The last piece of her parents' home. It had been run down. The windows were cracked, the roof leaked in different places, and the lights didn't always work. But that building had been the place where all her fondest memories with her parents that she loved so much resided. And those memories, the pieces that reminded her of them were now in flames.

Her parents always told her to focus on her life and her dreams. But all she had wanted was to make her parents happy.

When they left she was crushed. Seeing their home destroyed was reopening those wounds and breaking what few parts of her heart had been left undamaged in the past.

"P-papa…" She sniffed, but couldn't find the energy to wipe her nose. Instead she left the tears the flow across her cheeks like a river. Un-wielding and powerful. Painful.

Ochaco made no movement to show she acknowledged Jiro's hand placed on her shoulder. "Uraraka…I am so sorry…" She knelt next to her, awkward but desperately wishing for a way to take her friends pain away. One arm wrapped around her shoulder and the other was placed on her arm, not completely a hug, but still very present. "I'm so sorry…W-what do you need?"

"I-I…" She took a deep, shaky breath. "W-where's Bakugou?"

Caught off guard, Jiro drew back. "What?" Once she processed the words, she immediately tensed. Jumping to her feet, her eyes scanned the area. "He was here?"

"He was when I left!" Uraraka cried out in fear. Was Bakugou in the explosion? He'd already miraculously survived one building's collapse, how likely was it that he would survive another? No, no, no. Please, hadn't Uraraka suffered enough? Now Bakugou too?

"Maybe he went to work!" Jiro suggested hopefully. When Uraraka didn't respond, Jiro scanned the area. In the distance, far from the house, Jiro caught sight of something metal. The large, metal boat that Uraraka had told her about had somehow survived the explosion with only burn marks on the side. Had it been thrown away in the blast? It was too far for anyone to see if they weren't looking.

Begging for a miracle, she rushed over to the boat. Most of the other firefighters made quick work of the small fires in the house then rushed to the trucks to go help with other damage across town. No one stopped her or tried to get Ochaco to move and help them. Jiro could hear some of the sirens as they drove off in the distance. At the boat, she searched around it for any sign of life.

Thankfully the world decided to give them some hope.

"Uraraka!" She cried out. The breathless hope in her voice must have jolted Uraraka enough to make her move. Once she got over, Jiro held out a piece of black cloth. Shredded, but identifiable. "That's his shirt, right? He must have got out!" Even Uraraka, desperate for some sign, looked at her skeptically. Jiro cursed that she hadn't any more proof. "Think about it! We would have found a body in the wreckage, right? He's probably in the forest somewhere."

While she was still skeptical, Uraraka was desperate enough to start to force herself to believe there was a chance. "In the forest? What could he be doing there?"

"I don't know," Jiro said, wishing she had a better answer. "Maybe- maybe the explosion freaked him out? Maybe something happened to make him leave. Maybe…" Her voice trailed off as pieces began fitting together in her head. "We…couldn't find the source of this explosion either."

"What?" What Jiro was saying clicked in her mind and Uraraka glared at her friend. "No- don't even say something like that! Bakugou is – I trust him! Why would he have helped me keep the house if he was just going to destroy it?"

Instantly Jiro threw her hands up in her defense. "Sorry, sorry! I didn't mean it, I was just saying." But anyone could see the wheels turning in her head. Two huge explosions, beyond what anyone had ever seen, both surrounding the same odd person? A very violent angry person at that. And it wasn't like he seemed to care much about others property if they recalled…

But Ochaco stubbornly refused to see it her way. "It couldn't have been him! I've been living with him for the last few months and not only was there no motive, but there was no way. How did he explode the house, huh? He didn't have any tools or C4 or anything! There was nothing he could have used to blow up the house himself!" Jiro nodded, but she could see in her eyes that there was still some doubt. Worried, Uraraka turned back to the forest. "You were right before, he must have run because- I don't know, he was scared or something! But not that!" She turned back to Jiro with a fire in her eyes. "We have to believe in our friends!"

"It's not that I don't want to Uraraka," Jiro explained. "But you've got to admit, this is suspicious. What would make him hide instead of find you or go to the police about the explosion? A normal person would have called for help or waited to make sure you found him."

"We both know he's not normal!" Uraraka exclaimed. "He barks at dogs and asks what microwaves are!" But no matter what Uraraka said, slivers of doubt began to push their way through her explanations. Determined to shake them off, she turned towards the forest. "He must be in there. I'll find him and we'll sort out this whole thing! You'll see!" Jiro was stunned as Uraraka pulled what she could of her firefighter gear to make herself lighter. In the end all she had was a dark t-shirt, her big boots and the large pants. "I'll be right back! Stay at the house in case he gets here before I do!"

"Uraraka!" Without hearing a word Uraraka rushed into the forest, leaving a stunned Jiro behind her. Jiro could only watch in shock as her friend disappeared behind many large trees and wood. She was torn between listening to what she had to say and following her.

If it had been anyone else she may have followed. But Uraraka could take care of herself. Besides, as she heard more cars pull into the driveway, she realized she may have to stay and explain a few things.

"Jiro!" She spun around to find Momo, Midoriya, Todoroki, Shinsou and Tokoyami running up to her. Jiro was surprised Shinsou was still there. She'd have thought he left with the other fire-fighters. Momo rushed to Jiro's side, eyes wide and full of concern. "What happened? We saw the house- it's a disaster! How did that-"

"Where's Uraraka?" Midoriya interrupted. The normally nervous and playful exterior he had was gone. Instead his eyes were filled with an intensity that reminded Jiro that he was in charge of their countries safety.

With a gulp she pointed at the forest. "She went in there. Bakugou went missing, so she went into the woods to find him." Momo gasped in shock while Tokoyami's eyes widened. Midoriya, Todoroki and, surprisingly, Shinsou all gave each other a knowing look. Jiro hadn't realized that Shinsou even knew them.

"Todoroki, Shinsou," Midoriya ordered with more authority than he ought to have. "Go after her. See if you can find her or Bakugou." The others were shocked when the two nodded without question before rushing into the forest. Jiro thought that Shinsou moved faster than he ever had for a fire emergency, while Todoroki seemed to almost slide across the ground. Jiro was mostly shocked that Midoriya wasn't going in after them himself. Wasn't he usually the reckless, jump into action right away kind of guy? Midoriya said nothing about it and instead turned to the others. "Come on, let's get away from here. They may come back to the house, and I need to make some calls." Some calls? Now? To who?

Tokoyami seemed to find some issues with that to. "Hold on," he argued as he kept pace with Midoriya and Yaoyorozu who started back towards the house. "You can't just order other people to go into a forest in the middle of a disaster! We should be searching for Bakugou along with them. How can you possibly say that he is innocent after this?" Tokoyami tried to catch his attention, but Midoriya continued on without a word. Jiro had never seen the flustered, nervous looking Midoriya look more of a leader than he did in that moment. Jiro was almost afraid of the freckled green-haired man in front of her. How had that happened?

Before Jiro followed the others, she heard something like a crash from inside the strange looking boat. Curious, Jiro moved her way around to the entrance and climbed up inside. _Bakugou had better not be hiding in this thing,_ she muttered to herself as she climbed up and stood in what felt like a big metal dome. Then nearly jumped out of her chest.

Standing at a large desk with wires hanging around it was this-thing. A being about her size, but with green scales instead of skin. There were two long claws where the toes were supposed to be. Instead of two arms the being had four long arms, one holding a large grey gun like item in its hand. It wore blue pants with a jacket and had a helmet on the floor next to it. Its eyes were a frightening shade of yellow with long slits instead of pupils. And its head- it rounded around the face, but then pointed at the back into a long spike. Then the creature fixed a pair of wide eyes on her.

With a shriek she fell out of the boat and onto the grass. Jiro scrambled away as her heart pounded in her chest, refusing to believe what was right in front of her. She tried closing her eyes for a moment, expecting to wake up from the horrible dream. Instead when she opened her eyes, the creature had jumped from the ship to loom over her. She let out another scream of terror. _Did I walk into one of my videogames this morning?_

This- thing- barely acknowledged her screams. It tilted its head to the side, and Jiro was horrified when his neck grew along with him. "Human! Who are you? An accomplice of lord explosion murder?" Lord what now? It had to be a dream, it HAD to be. Maybe it was some kind of costume? A-a-a bad prank? Her heart stopped when the creature jumped from the boat and raised its weapon. "Answer my question human! Or you will be vaporized!" In her head she was screaming for help. Officer Tokoyami, Yaoyorozu, Midoriya, anyone! But not a word came out when she was paralyzed with fear.

The creature obviously did not hold human life in as high of a regard as he did himself. When she did not come up with an answer, it raised its laser to aim. "So be it then,"

"NO!" Out of nowhere a red blur threw himself at the creature. Jiro jumped, the shock of the new arrival enough to make her get to her feet. She watched, transfixed as a blur of red wrestled with the lizard creature. After a swift punch at the creature that send the laser flying five feet away from them, the red blur jumped to its feet. And there, Jiro gasped at whose back it was that was facing her.

Kirishima?

The lizard creature coughed before crawling to its feet. "A-agent Kirishima, you are out of line!" Agent? What kind of agent, the cosplayer's society of police? Kirishima kept Jiro behind him, crouched down in a defensive position with both arms out. His raised arms however meant Jiro was able to see how his skin looked like…glass, with a red colour underneath it where his arm was supposed to be.

"She's with me, she's with me!" Kirishima cried out, a hint of desperation and panic. Despite the confusion, Jiro was able to breathe a sigh of relief when she recognized the voice for certain. But then that relief quickly vanished when she wondered just what Kirishima was doing there.

The lizard pointed behind Kirishima to Jiro. "She is a human lifeform who has seen us and has potentially been aiding Lord Explosion Murder. We have to eliminate the breach." "Humans are only on a 2nd class world, the loss of one will not change…" It trailed off when its eyes widened at Kirishima's state. From the back Jiro could not see as much, but her eyes widened when Kirishima's figure started to change.

If Jiro were not seeing it with her own two eyes, she would have thought she was imagining it. But she watched, transfixed as Kirishima began to change. The tips of Kirishima's hairs were most certainly on fire. The red skin underneath the glass was practically glowing. His fingers pointed until they became large claws. She could barely see the part of his neck where three long slits on either side formed. And under his shirt it looked like he was glowing even more. "If you don't get out of here right now," Kirishima growled, his voice gravely and deep. "You will find out what it is really like fighting a man from the crimson riot planet. Do you want that?" Planet? A wave of heat coursed over both of them. The lizard creature hissed in defiance, but even Jiro could see it shaking its legs.

"F-fine. But you are out of line as an agent of the intergalactic space military. Y-You will hear from general Endeavor for this!" It cried out. Not wanting to risk its luck, it scrambled into the forest to hopefully never be seen again. Both Kirishima and Jiro waited a few moments before taking a breath. Then Kirishima turned to face Jiro with a small smile on his face. And she froze.

It was true. She knew after looking into her eyes that she hadn't imagined his transformation. His skin had a thick transparent layer over top with red shining underneath, especially around the chest under his shirt. His hands were claws and the pointed teeth she always thought was just her imagination beamed at her. His hair was sizzling with flames that would not go out. The red eyes she thought were just contacts- they were real.

"Jiro, are you okay? I'm sorry you had to..." Jiro was shaking. Not as bad as she had been with the creature, but this time there was a different kind of fear. When he saw her, Kirishima's eyes widened. He looked over himself as if just realizing what he looked like. "I- Oh man, Jiro, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to freak you out, really. I-I can explain."

"I-I…" She muttered, not sure what to say. She wanted to say a sarcastic comment to lighten the mood, but she had a feeling nothing she could say would make anything she was about to hear better. "F-first Uraraka's house is destroyed. Then we find out Bakugou is missing…"

"Bakugou's missing?" Kirishima interrupted. Jiro didn't pay attention to that.

"Then…then this weird boat looking thing has the lizard creature from aliens in it! It tries to vaporize me with that," She waved towards the laser at the side. "Weapon, and you jump out of nowhere to save me,"

"I thought it was manly," Kirishima said with a pout.

"Looking like…a-an alien!" Kirishima held his breath. "Then the creature recognizes you, calls you an agent, you say you're from a different planet and that you're in the intergalactic space military? Hunting someone called 'lord explosion murder?' I-is this some kind of joke? A really, really bad prank?" She prayed it was. For all that was good in the world, let it be some kind of messed up prank. The two of them could just laugh it off and she'd be sure to get him back in Mario cart later. They could go back to normal.

But Kirishima said nothing.

"Kirishima," Jiro started slowly. "WHAT is going on?"


	15. Good Things Come to an End

Good Things Come to an end

"Bakugou!"

"Lord explosion murder, reveal yourself!"

"Bakugou! Where are you?"

"Creature, if you do not reveal yourself I will burn down this forest!"

"Bakugou!"

Bakugou cringed. Before he had always thought there would be no disadvantages to his extended hearing. However at that moment Bakugou contemplated cutting his ears off all together.

The alien in question was currently residing high up in one of the tallest trees he could find. All around him there were multiple voices calling his name. Most from Endeavors soldiers all around him, calling out for lord explosion murder. There were a few calling him by his given name, though none of them sounded like the soldiers that had been there in the attack. He thought he heard half-and-half at one point. The idea made him groan. He didn't want that weak human looking for him. If he was looking for him, that must have meant humans had found his wake of destruction.

Uraraka. He'd been gone for a few hours now. Had she seen the house? Did she know it was him? There was no way she could have known how he did it. But whenever he closed his eyes he could only see her heartbroken face staring at him. And deep down he knew he deserved it.

"Bakugou." He froze. That voice was much closer than the others.

Looking down the tree, he caught sight of a familiar face staring up at him. Aizawa, thankfully alone, stood at the trunk of his tree staring up at him. He was in his alien form, the one Bakugou would be able to identify easily. Bakugou wanted to curse at the world. Of all the people to find him, why Aizawa? And why now, at what felt like his lowest point? Worst of all, Aizawa was staring straight up at him, waiting patiently for Bakugou to come down.

Eventually Bakugou jumped down to the earth. His crash left a loud boom that resounded through the forest. He hoped that others would assume it was just another tree falling. "How did you find me?"

"You weren't that hard to find," Aizawa admitted. "You left a number of explosions and broken forestry behind you," he said while waving to the trees scattered behind him. Bakugou scowled but didn't explain himself.

"So you really were here," Bakugou snarled at Aizawa. "Spying on me?"

"Yes," Aizawa answered without hesitation. "It was either spy on your or take you in." after a pause to make sure Bakugou wouldn't attack he asked, "How did you know that?"

"That m#($&(%&^(g general told me after attacking me with his weaklings." Under his breath Aizawa cursed. So those were the people trying to find him in the forest. Bakugou caught it a raised an eyebrow at him. "Aren't you with them?"

"Yes. But only by association. We have different goals." He pushed his hands into his pockets. Bakugou hated how relaxed Aizawa was acting. Bakugou was wearing only his pants and some boots because his shirt had been torn apart in his escape. He'd had to return to his original form in order to fight back and be prepared for another attack. What kind of world let Aizawa relax in that situation? "I spied on you," Aizawa continued, "To try and prove to the others that you could do more than destroy." Bakugou flinched. Visibly. Aizawa caught the movement and paused. "What's wrong?"

"…Things were different here." Aizawa raised an eyebrow. It was clear he didn't understand where Bakugou was going with this, but decided not to change the subject. "…I was different. And it was…better. It felt good."

"I know. I saw. Bakugou, you can be different," he tried to tell him, but everything he said did not reach the heart.

"Can I?" Bakugou exclaimed, turning on Aizawa in a flash. "I blew up her house. She doesn't have an f!(#(*%g clue who I am. All I do is screw up good stuff. All I can do is destroy!"

"Just the fact that you feel guilt around that means that you can change. That you have changed." Bakugou said nothing. He heard the shift as Aizawa moved closer to Bakugou. He felt what was supposed to be a comforting hand on his shoulder but shook it off immediately. Aizawa did not try again. "Bakugou. I know you didn't mean to do this. Before you would have laughed in the face of all this, but now you wish it hadn't happened. Doesn't that prove you have changed?" For a moment Aizawa held his breath. Bakugou's answer took quite a long time to come.

And when it did, it wasn't what Aizawa had hoped to hear. "…I want to go back to that."

"What?"

"I want to be like that again!" Bakugou straightened, staring at Aizawa with a rage grown from despair. "I want to be like that again! The f #k with all these f (#($&g feelings and regrets! I want to be able to destroy everything and everyone without giving a s #t! The good feelings ain't worth all this f$*%%*g pain! I didn't ask for any of this s #t! It's all your fault!" He pointed at Aizawa who was able to remain surprisingly calm through Bakugou's tantrum. "You! You kept telling me how I could be different and how oh so f! $%(g great it is! What kind of sick m )*#(*(%&%r chooses this for themselves? It's your fault for making me think changing was so good! Stupid dumb humans like Deku, Kirishima, Jiro, Momo and freaking half-and-half all making their way of life look so And Uraraka for making me learn how to change! For stupid round-faced Uraraka for making me want to! I never asked either of you f (#*%#s to be nice to me! I didn't ask the two of you to care about my wellbeing! How dare both of you! How-" Bakugou choked, the words catching in his throat. Aizawa waited in silence as Bakugou scrambled to find the words to force out. When Bakugou looked up again, tears dotted his eyes.

"…H-how come I have to care so f )$*%&#g much about you people?"

And that was the moment Aizawa wore the first real smile he'd had so far that whole day.

Because he knew Bakugou was still a monster. But he was a good man along with that.

Their moment was interrupted with the sound of a yell. "Katsuki! Are you okay? Katsuki!" Bakugou's eyes widened. There was only one person who he would ever allow to call him by his first name. And lucky for them, that person was the one calling it. However, when he heard her voice call out to him, he also heard a number of other footsteps stop. Then some head in the direction that her voice came from. That made his blood begin to boil and the red in his eyes went from the colour of a dull wine to a fearsome flame.

"Uraraka!" Before Aizawa could say anything Bakugou was on his feet and staring in the direction the voice came from.

Realizing his intention, Aizawa hissed. "No Bakugou!" Aizawa tried to reach out and stop him before he got away. "Endeavors men are still around!" But Bakugou was faster. Bakugou raced through the trees with a vengeance, eyes focused on the prize and nothing else. It only took Aizawa a second to blink. And when he opened his eyes, Bakugou was gone.

…

* * *

"Katsuki! Please, please be out here! Say something!"

Uraraka had only said Bakugou's first name maybe once or twice before. It felt foreign on her lips and she wondered whether Bakugou would be angry at her for using it. But she was so desperate at that moment that she really didn't care how angry he would be. As long as it got his attention that was all she cared about.

With tired aching feet Uraraka ran aimlessly thought the forest, knowing there was no way she could possibly scour the entire forest but tried anyway. Bakugou HAD to be out there somewhere. She refused to believe what Jiro had said was true. There was no way Bakugou was a part of it. There was no way Bakugou was her enemy. He was her friend, he'd proven that! Maybe- she'd started to wonder if they may have been something more. But above all else, she trusted him! There was no way he played any part in what had happened.

Sure, what Jiro said made sense. It was weird that two untraceable explosions both happened surrounding the same person. Along with how Bakugou treated people and how he didn't seem to understand her culture at all. And with what Tokoyami said about Bakugou not being a resident at the apartment and appearing out of nowhere…No. No! The Bakugou she knew was not some kind of…what? A terrorist? No, there was no way! He couldn't be! He'd protected her, he'd helped her. A-and even if he was, what good would destroying a run-down apartment and a random house in the middle of nowhere be? Neither of those two places would inspire much terror in the country. And both of those places weren't wealthy so he didn't gain anything out of it. They- there was no way. No, Uraraka couldn't let herself doubt him. What kind of a friend would that make her?

Trying to shake her head clear of all doubts she called again, even louder that time. "Katsuki!"

"Ochaco, shut the f #k up!"

Uraraka barely had time to scream before a large black and orange palm clamped over her mouth. She felt a rush of air as she was pulled into the chest of whom must have been Bakugou. Despite her shock Uraraka breathed the biggest sigh of relief in her entire life. _He's okay,_ Uraraka decided. _No matter what, he's okay._ If she couldn't feel his heart beating a million miles per hour in his chest, she would have relaxed completely. But Bakugou's arms were so tense around her that she wondered if she was actually being held by a stone statue. She felt the tip of his chin atop her head and that his jaw was stiff. His body posture made her tense as well and hold her breath. If she could see him she would see his eyes staring forward, waiting impatiently for his enemies to appear. Uraraka didn't know what she was waiting for, but as long as her friend…

What…

The…

Heck.

Her eyes must have widened to the size of stars when she saw two…beings crawl through the forest in the distance. One was on all fours- four, long, slimy tentacles as legs. The creature wore a strange black uniform and with four tentacles for legs, two holding up a gun-shaped weapon and a gooey purple head with eight eyes across the face. At his side was a large, wolf-looking creature nearly twice her size. It wore black pants, carried two guns and had pure black eyes that were impossible to read. Both studied the surroundings while marching on like soldiers. Not odd creatures that looked like they came out of a children's drawings. But they were very real, far too close for her liking and nothing like she had ever seen before.

Certainly not human.

Then she looked down and saw that the hand holding her wasn't human either.

She let out loudest muffled scream she possible could. Bakugou cursed before tightening his grip around her to keep her in place. Uraraka screamed and thrashed in his arms, but Bakugou's hold was even stronger than when they had sparred together. She struggled, tried desperately to get away, to prove the ideas forming in her head was just her crazy imagination. A result of stress, but not real. He would not release his hold on her until the two creatures had disappeared through the wood. Even after, he did not let her move for some time until any sound that followed them was gone.

Then, with great regret, he released her.

With a gasp Uraraka stumbled forwards. She fell to her knees, clutching at her chest and neck to catch her breath. Bakugou had done nothing to stop her breathing. Her own fear had cut off her lungs. Those- things- were definitely not from earth. But she didn't understand…"What were those things?" Uraraka gasped.

There was a pause before he answered. "Aliens." There was no doubt that the voice belonged to Bakugou. But there was also no doubt in his voice when he answered.

"Real aliens?" Uraraka's voice cracked. Tears pricked the corners of her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. "From star wars or star trek?" With great difficulty, Uraraka forced herself to stand. "And…and you know that," She stated, already knowing the answer. "Your hand…it's not the same hand that I fought with…I-it's bigger, and pure black…" Uraraka remembered the cosplay Bakugou had been wearing when she first met him. Back then shed assumed he'd had it on before they got there and it was made of good enough quality so it survived with him. But the realistic part of her mind told her that even if that was the case, there was no way Bakugou would have been able to put it on at her place. She'd seen him only a few hours before- and there were no materials in her house he could have used. And those creature she saw were definitely not in costumes.

With shaking hands, Uraraka slowly turned to face him. When she finally opened her eyes, she knew that what she was seeing was not a costume.

The creature she saw behind her was Bakugou. But not the one she had gotten to know. He was taller than the Bakugou she knew, at least a few inches, and wider too. She had been right about his hands. Large, orange and black instead of small and pale. At his forearm where the tattoos used to be were large, metal shapes that looked like grenades. There was a mist that surrounded him, something Uraraka wasn't sure if it was really there or just her imagination. His shirt was gone, revealing his chest, except that time it was covered in scars and stitches that weren't there before. The tips of his messy blond hair were sparkling with tiny flames. On his back was a procession of spikes that steadily got larger as it went down, into it reached a hanging green tail that was pointed at the end. As Uraraka slowly lifted her gaze up, she found that his mouth was so wide it almost reached his ears and was filled with pointed teeth. At his ears there were two black flaps of skin with pointed edges.

Finally she reached the eyes. The dark, red, wide eyes that she had been staring into for months without doubt. She had never once questioned why he felt the need to always wear those weird, red contacts. It had been his choice, a style that he apparently would wear even into the night. She'd never let herself think too much about it. Uraraka wasn't one to judge.

But at that moment? The red eyes that were surrounded by a darkness the colour of ash stared back at her. And she knew they weren't fake. Those were the eyes of the man she had trusted. And the creature that had taken that trust and crushed it.

Katsuki Bakugou said nothing as Uraraka turned to face him. Her eyes were wider than the stars of the Milky Way, yet he felt no warmth. Her eyes scanned him, and he was vaguely reminded of his day at court. When he felt all those eyes looking all over him, studying him to decide his fate. What their eyes saw would decide whether he lived or died.

Bakugou decided that the feeling he got from Uraraka's eyes was much worse.

Her honey brown eyes met his blood red eyes. Her head was swarming with ideas, but the truth pushed its way through. The truth that she had wanted to avoid for a long time. Something that had always been present in her mind, an itch that continued to yell and scream at her. No matter how long Uraraka tried to plug her ears and pretend not to see it, it would never leave. And now, it was unavoidable.

"A-are you a criminal? Bakugou?"

"…Yeah."

She let out a sound similar to a sob. Her hand clamped over her mouth to stop it, and her breathing became tight as she struggled to maintain a steady rhythm. So it was true. All that everyone had said, all that she'd tried to ignore…But it was even worse than that. He wasn't some petty, rob a grocery store criminal. He wasn't even a terrorist like she'd thought. "You are…an alien then?" Bakugou said nothing, but his silence was his answer. "One of them?" She waved in the direction the other creatures-aliens had left. Momentarily his eyes flickered in that direction, but he said nothing. "You're an alien…th-that's why you always called everyone humans, and didn't understand stuff…" His silence continued. Uraraka wished he would just say something. Anything would be better than him letting her come to her own conclusions.

"You…you did it? Did you wreck my parents' house?" Silence again. And then…

"Yes."

"Why?" Bakugou frowned, confused for the first time. Tears that Uraraka had been holding back that whole day finally started to fall, cascading in rivers down her cheeks. "Why would you do that? Even if you're some criminal, and an alien, I thought…Weren't we friends? I thought you said you cared about me! Was that a lie?" She was screaming. She didn't even care of the other aliens heard her and tried to find them. None of them matter at that moment. "After all that we've been through together- did you ever care? Was everything a lie? Were you just- using me? W-when I thought we were getting closer, was it just you pretending to care about me? I thought we were friends and…even more than…Was it all fake? Can you even care? Can you love?"

"I-"

"NO!" Uraraka shouted when Bakugou tried to reach out to her. "DON'T come near me!" He stopped, his red eyes wide and attentive. She let out another sob that she quickly covered with her hand. Different emotions flickered through Bakugou's eyes, but she didn't bother to read them. "You destroyed my house! My parents' house, even though you knew how much it meant to me, you destroyed it! It's gone, everything I worked for is gone! Did you even think about how I would feel?"

"Of course I f (#)*$g did!" Bakugou shouted back. "You were the first thing I thought about! Uraraka, I,"

"SHUT UP!" Uraraka screamed at him. "You don't get to say anything! Not after what you've done! You lied to me, you used me, you destroyed my parents' home and all their memories, you made me love you!" Uraraka chocked. Both her hands were tightened into fists at her side. She didn't bother trying to hide the tears anymore. She didn't care if he saw her pain. Actually, she wanted him to see it. Maybe then he'd actually feel something over what he'd done.

There was a pause as the only sound in the area was Uraraka's heavy breathing. Bakugou was trembling all over. He wanted to act. He wanted to move, dammit! Stop crying, stop crying! His entire being shook with every tear that fell. His whole world was shattering like a glass and she was stomping on the pieces. This wasn't what he wanted. He hated this! He wanted her smile, he wanted her big brown eyes, he wanted her soft hugs and innocent laughter. Not this pain. He'd rather be stabbed through the chest and struck by lightning than this.

Finally, Uraraka spoke again. "…Leave." Bakugou froze. When Uraraka's eyes finally lifted to meet hers, they were filled with a rage he doubted even he could match. "Get out. Go. If you're really an alien, there must be a bunch of other worlds, right? Go!" She yelled, waving her arms in earnest. "Get off of this planet! I never want to see your face again Bakugou! I-I," Uraraka choked once again. Her eyes met his, a glass plane covered in waves meeting the eyes made of glass that was shattering. "I can't believe I was stupid enough to love you."

No.

Not that.

Why?

F (#)*&&%)g dammit, why that?

He'd wished she'd just stab him. It would hurt less than that.

It felt like being shattered. The few words made the whole world stop and like a piece of glass just- crash. He didn't want her to say that. Heck, he wanted to make her take it back. She loved him? She said it. But in the absolutely worst way possible. It was like he was being offered the world only for that world and everything else he cared about to be taken away.

Take it back. _Take it back,_ he begged in his mind. But Bakugou was too proud to say it.

Uraraka was heaving as she stared at him. Her anger started to dissipate after she'd used her energy and said all she wanted to say. With the wave of anger gone though, her eyes started to clear. And they widened. She was shocked to see that the man who hid his emotions under a million layers of iron was wearing his emotions on his sleeve.

And he was breaking.

"…Bakugou?"

"This human honestly was in love with a monster?" A voice next to her muttered. "Proof that this civilization deserves to be a level 2 planet."

Both Uraraka and Bakugou jumped. Uraraka spun around and would have screamed if her voice wasn't so worn from all the running and yelling. In front of her was a large, giant-like creature that seemed to be completely covered in fire. It had eyes however, and those pale blue eyes leered down at her. Uraraka was so startled she fell backward on the ground. The creature-alien-tilted it's head at her. "Who are you girl? An accomplice of lord explosion murder's?"

Bakugou snarled at him. _Moron,_ he chastised himself. He was so caught up in his conversation with Uraraka that he hadn't even noticed when that loser appeared. "Get the f #k away from her," Bakugou growled at him. Endeavor lifted his gaze to narrow his eyes at him, suspicious. Probably ready for another fight. But Bakugou noticed he wasn't fighting. Odd. The man had fought right away last time. Why wasn't…

Then the ground around them glowed.

Stupid. Stupid Bakugou, he hadn't been paying attention. Normally he would have run when the blue lights on the ground came to encircle him, making a hard glass grow in a cage around him. But when he tried to move, he found he couldn't. His energy was gone. He stared at the ground, helpless, as one glass cage formed around him and the other at his side.

Two circles? Two cages? But…No.

"LET HER GO YOU J!( )*$&%)(*(S" Bakugou shouted at him. "SHE AIN'T GOT F #K TO DO WITH THIS!" Uraraka trembled in her glass cage, trying to break the glass but had lost too much energy in the day.

"The human is an accomplice of lord explosion murders," Endeavor said to the soldier as if he didn't hear Bakugou. "We must figure out what exactly she plotted with him. She seems to be crazy enough to care for him. It will be up to the jury to decide whether she be simply imprisoned or executed for association."

"F*$K! YOU MORON! YOU KNOW THAT AIN'T S #T!" He banged against the glass, rattling his cage. "Just take me! I don't even give a f #k anymore, just let her stay!" At first Endeavor didn't respond, watching as his soldiers one by one were teleported back to the ship. But then, just before he himself was teleported, he turned back to Bakugou. The smile in his eyes shook Bakugou to the core.

 _You made this happen. You put us through all this trouble? Then you'd better pay for it._ Then, in a blue light, he was transported back as well.

"No!" Bakugou slammed against his cage. No, that wouldn't happen! He wouldn't let them take Uraraka to get back at him. A green light of the transport started to form around him. _Like heck,_ Bakugou cursed. Luckily they hadn't taken the time to ensure the glass. With a quick swipe of his tail he swung it around and sliced through the glass, shattering it and freeing him. He jumped out of the cage the instant before it was transported up.

But when he spun to his side however, the green light had already started to form around Uraraka's cage. "Bakugou!" She cried, hammering at the glass for dear life. Bakugou was taken aback by the fear in her eyes. "W-what's going on?" He'd kill Endeavor for putting that fear in her eyes.

"NO!" he shouted once again, diving for her cage. But even with all the enhancements, advantages and training he had done in his life, it didn't matter.

He was just a moment to slow.

Uraraka was taken into the ship above. Bakugou hit the ground where Uraraka had been just a second ago, too late.

…

* * *

"Is that what I think it is?"

Todoroki looked up to the sky where Shinsou was pointing. His eyes widened when he caught the sight of a green light shining from the ground up. That could only mean one thing, and it wasn't what they wanted to see. The two men looked at each other, a feeling of dread building up in each of them. _Are we too late?_ If they were, that could cause a number of complications.

But his main concern wasn't that at the moment. He needed to find Uraraka.

"Let's keep moving," Todoroki suggested. Shinsou nodded and the two rushed off without argument. Silently they scanned the woods, eyes darting here and there to try and find their missing members. Uraraka had been yelling a while ago, Todoroki was sure. That had to be her voice. Though he hadn't heard what she was saying, he could hear the emotions in her words. Surprise. Fear. Anger. Then fear again. What had happened?

As the two kept running, they were stopped only when they caught sight of a blur of black running in the same direction. Instantly alert, both Shinsou and Todoroki halted as they came to a clearing, meeting up with the black blur. When they all stopped the two realized it was a man dressed in all black with dark scruffy hair. Considering all that had happened that day, Todoroki decided that saying the man was just a random hiker or homeless man sleeping in the woods was unlikely.

"Who are you?" Shinsou asked before Todoroki had the chance.

At first the man said nothing. Then, slowly, he came to relax and stood up straight. "Aizawa. I'm looking for a…a friend." Todoroki raised his eyebrow in suspicion. He doubted there could be that many people lost in the woods at once.

"So are we," Todoroki told him. "Who are you looking for?" Aizawa said nothing at first. His eyes narrowed at both of them, clearly trying to study whether they were trustworthy or not. Todoroki took the chance to come to his own conclusions. There could have been a number of reasons they saw that green burst of light in the sky, but he could make a few guesses. Now whether this man was involved in all that was going on was a different story altogether. To be safe, Todoroki noticed that Shinsou had knelt into a crouch, ready to fight if necessary.

However they were all interrupted before a fight broke up. There was a cry, a loud, piercing, heartbreaking scream. It echoed through the once silent forest, catching all of them off guard. The voice was so torn and broken that it shook Todoroki to his core. What was worse was that he recognized it. Aizawa immediately snapped in the direction of the voice. "Bakugou!" In an instant he was sprinting in the direction of the voice, Todoroki and Shinsou hot on his trail. A sinking suspicion loomed over Todoroki as they rushed to source of the sound.

They were not surprised when they finally got to a clearing where, of course, Bakugou was. However they were all surprised to find Bakugou shouting and cursing at the sky above him. "M (#&*(%&(*^*S! GET BACK DOWN HERE YOU PIECES OF S #T! GET BACK DOWN HERE AND FIGHT ME! GIVE HER THE F #K BACK!" Todoroki felt his blood drain. Give her back?

Aizawa tried taking a few steps towards him. "Bakugou-"

"YOU GOOD FOR NOTHING EXTRAS! I'LL F ()$&#G MURDER EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU LOW-LIVES!"

"Bakugou!" Bakugou twisted around to see the new faces, his face full of rage. Shinsou and Todoroki both stepped back when they saw Bakugou's form. He certainly…didn't look human. At first it looked like Bakugou was going to attack them, but when he saw Aizawa the rage slowly faded. Instead what remained was something Todoroki never expected to see in Bakugou before.

A broken man.

He slumped to the ground, resting his elbows on his knees so he could cover his face with his hands. Shinsou looked to Todoroki for guidance, but Todoroki said nothing. The feeling of dread was building in his stomach. Only Aizawa moved. "Bakugou," Aizawa knelt down beside him. "What happened?"

"The b #($ d took Uraraka," Bakugou spat. "I got out but they took Uraraka to punish me."

Both Todoroki and Shinsou tensed up. That was the last thing they expected and most certainly the worst case scenario. What were they going to tell Midoriya?

There was shuffling behind them. "J-Jiro!" Todoroki and Shinsou turned, shocked to see a number of people rushing over to them through the woods. As called, Jiro got there first. Todoroki's eyes widened when he saw a red-haired man following behind…also looking a little less than human. From talking to Momo lately Todoroki could guess who the man was. And seeing him now only made him groan. Another one?

Kirishima blinked at Shinsou and Todoroki. "Huh? Who are you two?"

"Not important," Shinsou answered quickly, making sure to keep the focus off them. "Who are you?"

"Who cares about that?" Jiro exclaimed. "Where is- whoa!" She jumped back when she caught sight of Bakugou and Aizawa. Neither of them reacted as she stumbled backwards, though coming to terms with what she was seeing quicker than they expected. Perhaps it had something to do with the not so human man following her.

After his eyes trailed over Jiro, Bakugou's eyes widened at Kirishima, only then noticing the man's true form. "S\\#t," he cursed. "You too?"

Kirishima had done so much apologizing that day, he didn't have the energy to do anything other than shrug. "Sorry man," he muttered. "I work with Aizawa."

At first Kirishima expected him to jump out at him. But Bakugou just shook his head at the ground, not enough energy to fight. "This has been one f (#)&g day." Aizawa frowned at Jiro next to Kirishima, but Kirishima would not meet his eyes.

Coming up behind Jiro, three more people followed. Todoroki cursed when he saw Momo with Midoriya and Tokoyami. Why hadn't he stopped them from coming? Both Tokoyami and Momo's eyes bugged out of their skin when they saw Kirishima, Bakugou and Aizawa all together. Todoroki nearly had a heart attack when Yaoyorozu like she was going to faint. "Oh my…" She covered her mouth with both hands. "Kirishima…he was telling the truth…" Oh no. Todoroki turned to Kirishima accusingly. What exactly had he told them

"I think there are a number of explanations needed here," Tokoyami muttered.

"That can wait," Midoriya interrupted. "First off, where is Uraraka?" His eyes landed on Bakugou, expecting an answer.

But it was Aizawa who answered for him. "She was taken by an alien known as Endeavor." Tokoyami and Yaoyorozu seemed to pale at the mention of alien. Aizawa ignored it however and went on. "Endeavor is a general from the intergalactic military defense. His mission must have been to come and get Bakugou, but he took the human- Uraraka instead."

"She's gone?" Jiro asked, her voice coming out as a whisper. Slowly, her voice started to build, louder and heavier than before. "She's gone because of him?" She turned on Bakugou who would not meet her eyes. "They were supposed to take you and they took my friend instead? How is that fair? What did Uraraka do?"

"Jiro-" Kirishima tried to go comfort her, but she immediately shook him off. Looking like a kicked puppy he stepped away so Momo could wrap her arms around Jiro. Todoroki could assume that this Kirishima was the man Momo had said Jiro was seeing. From the looks of things his reveal hadn't gone that well.

Todoroki couldn't help but sympathise with Jiro. She not only found out the man she was seeing was an alien, but now one of her closest friends had been taken away as well for a crime she didn't commit. Todoroki's hands tightened into fists unconsciously. _If only I'd done something before…_

"I'll get her back."

All eyes shifted to Bakugou. The man finally looked up, many of the humans shying away from his cold red eyes. But some saw the determination in those eyes as well. "I'll get her back. I'll go up to that m ()#&)(#g ship and bring her back here, whether those a#()*$()*%s want me to or not." Bakugou pushed himself off the ground, Aizawa following silently. "I've got my ship. And those pile of junk military ships ain't gonna get them anywhere fast enough." Finally he looked up, meeting Jiro's eyes with a vengeance. "I'll get Uraraka back if it kills me." Jiro's eyes widened. Anyone could tell that she was not pleased or happy. But, slowly, she nodded with the same determination in her eyes.

Todoroki felt bad being the bearer of bad news. "…Your ship was damaged in the explosion," Todoroki told him, making Bakugou turn to face him. "It won't be flying anytime soon." Bakugou cursed to himself.

"We'll use mine." Bakugou spun around to face Aizawa. The man just stared back at him, giving the smallest nod so only Bakugou could see it. "We'll save your friend." Bakugou said nothing right away. But when he turned away, Todoroki could see a small smile on his face.

"Ah yeah!" Kirishima pumped his arms in the air. "Let's go! Rescue mission!" Spinning around he held out a nervous hand to Jiro. "Come on! I'll show you a real space ship!" While her eyes did light up at the idea, she still narrowed them at him.

"I'm still mad at you, you jerk." Kirishima pouted as Jiro turned away from him. Aizawa raised an eyebrow as if to ask, 'is there something you'd like to tell me?' Kirishima purposefully did not meet his eyes, looking quite sheepish.

Midoriya nodded, apparently the calmest of the humans. "Yeah, we have to save Uraraka. We will need to get in the air as soon as possible. I doubt they will be too happy when they find out that its Uraraka not Bakugou in their cage." Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone quickly. "I'm calling Tsyuu," Midoriya stated.

Jiro turned to him incredulously. "What's she going to do? Ask her students to make little paper airplanes that we can throw at the spaceship?" Yaoyorozu also frowned in disapproval. She was probably thinking it was a bad idea to involve Tsyuu in all this. Not only was there little she could do, but how exactly where they going to explain to someone who hadn't been there that her friend was kidnapped by alien military men?

"I don't care what the f #k you do, deku," Bakugou snarled at him, making Midoriya take a few steps back. "I'm gonna go get Uraraka back."


	16. Rescue the Hero

Rescue the Hero

"YOOOOOOOOI, who are all these humans and alieeeeeens?"

"Don't question it Mic. We've got a job to do."

While Aizawa went onto explain all that had happened, the others prepared the ship for flight. Tokoyami, Shinsou and Momo all volunteered to stay on ground if Bakugou managed to transport Uraraka down or they had to make a crash landing. At first Aizawa wanted Kirishima to come along with them, but he saw the way the alien had been staring at the human named Jiro. The human who pointedly ignored every attempt he made at talking to her. Aizawa couldn't think that day could get any more surprising. He'd told Kirishima not to do it. The heck with the laws, Aizawa knew it would hurt him. Kirishima must have known how much pain he would put both he and his human in when he finished his mission and had to say goodbye. Why hadn't the boy listened?

On the other hand, Aizawa should have seen it. Kirishima was quite an emotional person and reckless in his own regard. Somewhat selfish too, if Aizawa was honest. He'd do what he thought was right without any regard to the world around him. When Aizawa recruited him, he thought those traits would be good towards finding Bakugou. He understood Bakugou's recklessness and one-track mind, but was emotional enough to be able to get along with even a man with Bakugou's differences. What Aizawa hadn't been counting on was Kirishima's personality making it easier to get closer to more than just Bakugou. In the past few weeks, when Kirishima was in his original form he was always glowing a bit brighter. His smile was a tad wider. He'd agree to any job without as much as a frown. The man had been light on his feet, practically singing on even the dreariest days and skipping through mud. Definitely a man in love.

Aizawa had been so focused on what was going on with Bakugou he hadn't paid attention. But Kirishima was his friend, just as old as Bakugou and had just as much experience in the world, if not less. They both needed Aizawa's support, just in different ways. Aizawa hadn't seen that, and now Kirishima was paying for it. He knew Kirishima would never see it that way, but Aizawa did. All he hoped now was that by allowing Kirishima to stay on earth with the human he'd have the chance to work it out. Aizawa hoped giving Kirishima some space to work it out on his own was what he needed.

At the moment, Aizawa had to focus on someone who did need someone to talk to.

"You know human, you're pretty good at flying a space ship," Present Mic was commenting to Todoroki who had taken the wheel. Todoroki ignored Mic who eyes him curiously. "Sooooo how can you do that?"

"It's really not that different than driving a car," Todoroki replied, pushing a few buttons and pulling a crank to get them airborne. Aizawa didn't remember what a 'car' was, but doubted that was the case. The human technology he had seen was far too different.

It he was able to help pilot the ship, Aizawa wasn't going to complain. He instead ignored them and went to Bakugou. The alien, amazingly, hadn't destroyed anything on the ship when they'd arrived. Instead he had picked a spot in the corner and sat there. For the next half an hour he did not say a word, or react when anyone walked close to him. Aizawa supposed there was a chance he was planning how to get on Endeavor's ship and past all the guards when they got there. However Aizawa thought it more likely the man was just sulking.

Bakugou looked up when Aizawa sat on the ground next to him. He narrowed his eyes, but there was less venom behind it than normal. Perhaps he'd decided to save his rage for the fight to come…or had used all of it up that day. "What do you want?" He snarled at him.

Aizawa barely reacted. "At the moment I'd love to take a nap and never wake up," Aizawa grunted. "But since that doesn't seem to be an option, I thought I'd see how you're doing."

Of course Bakugou barred his teeth at him. "None of your f #($*()g business!" He turned away instantly. Aizawa shrugged and leaned back, twiddling his thumbs while he waited patiently for Bakugou to give in and speak like he really wanted to. After not much time, Bakugou muttered, "So hair-for-brains was an alien? A soldier I'm guessing." Aizawa decided he must have been talking about Kirishima.

"Yes. I picked him specifically because I thought you two would get along." Bakugou scoffed but didn't argue. "If you like, after all this, I'll show you how to identify when an alien is hiding their true form."

"You're assuming your people don't try to kill me again and you've gotta chase me around again," Bakugou tested.

Instantly Aizawa turned so he was looking Bakugou in the eye. "Don't give up. We've still got a chance to convince them not to."

"At this point I don't really care," Bakugou admitted. "Why should I care about a bunch of f (#&$)*g weakling extras who don't know s #t about me? They can hate me for all I care…" But Bakugou's voice trailed off, his mind only half in the conversation. Aizawa waited to hear what was really bothering Bakugou. While Aizawa may have been bothered by the government, he knew Bakugou wouldn't care. But that wasn't anything new. "…She said she never wanted to see my face again." That was new.

"The human girl? Uraraka?"

Bakugou snarled at him. "Who else is there?" He growled again before turning away. "Found out who I was and what I'd done and hated me. Said she couldn't believe she'd ever loved someone like me." Bakugou shook his head, eyes low to the ground. "Its f #($*g stupid that I even cared. Now she's gone and I've got this…" Bakugou tried gesturing to his chest. "Pain that won't go away. All because of stupid round-face." Again, Aizawa assumed he was talking about Uraraka.

"She was angry," Aizawa suggested. "She had every right to be." Bakugou let out a humourless laugh, eyes never lifting to meet Aizawa's. With a calm exterior Aizawa put a comforting hand on Bakugou's shoulder. "But people aren't always thinking clearly when they are angry. This doesn't mean that she really wants that. That doesn't mean you can't fix this. Men are judged by what they do in the face of defeat." Aizawa tried gently pushing Bakugou's shoulder to get his attention. After a moment Bakugou tilted his head just enough so he could see Aizawa's eyes. "Are you the kind of person to just give up? Or will you get her back?"

Bleeps and the ships were the only answer Aizawa got. Bakugou held eye contact for a moment, trying to come up with an answer that would satisfy Aizawa. But in the end, the confident, ever so reckless and explosive alien, could only turn away and stare at the ground. "What good would anything I do be if she doesn't accept it? She hates me now." Aizawa sighed sadly. Unfortunately he couldn't think of anything to say that would help with that. Through their conversation, neither of them noticed the silence in the ship.

"I-If I can say something…" Both Aizawa and Bakugou looked up to see the human Midoriya in front of them. Aizawa couldn't recall much information on the human. All Kirishima had said was that he was a friend of Jiro's, but closer to Bakugou's human Uraraka. He was twisting his fingers in his hands, looking quite nervous. "You know…Uraraka…"

"Go the f #k away deku!" Midoriya jumped in fear. Aizawa glared at Bakugou for the insulting term, but decided not to clue the human in on it. "What the f #k do you want?" So much for going away…

"Well…Uraraka and I have been friends for a while and…when she lost her parents, she was really angry for a while. Did she tell you how they died?" Bakugou seemed to pause his fuming, curiosity sparking his interest. "Workplace injuries technically. They were trying to work on some houses with worse materials than they should have. The materials ended up poisoning them and they got sick…" Midoriya trailed off, clearly not wanted to go into further detail. But Bakugou's eyes were wide, interest clearly caught.

"…She was mad at a lot of people. Mad at her situation that they got sick and died in the first place. Angry that something like that could even happen to two nice, innocent people. And for a while, angry at her parents themselves for leaving her. Angry that despite the many times she told them to get better materials, they didn't listen. She doesn't like talking about the few days after her parents passed. But somehow, she got through it," Midoriya confirmed. "She was able to get up and keep going. And even though she felt somewhat betrayed, she still fought to keep the house that all her memories of them were in. All because she loved them very much." Aizawa glanced in Bakugou's direction, hoping for some sign that this was getting through to him. Bakugou said nothing, just kept his eyes trained on Midoriya, waiting.

Midoriya paused to take a breath. "They may have made a mistake not listening to her. And whether they were good reasons or not, Uraraka was angry with them about it. But in the end, she loved them so much that it didn't matter. So…that's why I'm thinking she'll forgive you. Love doesn't make someone weak enough to just give up on others. Love makes us stronger so that we can decide when someone should be let go of and when we need to forgive. Even when forgiving others is hard." He smiled, quite an innocent looking smile for a man his age.

Bakugou said nothing for a moment. Then, after a pause he grunted. "Get out of my face deku and get this f! ($$g ship off the ground." For those who didn't know him, they may have assumed Bakugou heard nothing. However those who did know him couldn't help but smile. His tone was much calmer than it was before.

Midoriya nodded, clearly happy he could help. Before going back to the ships controls he added, "Besides, if you really love her then you'll be strong enough to save her." He then left Bakugou to contemplate that information.

All the humans talked about love like it made them strong. It still didn't make too much sense to Bakugou…But there were quite a number of humans who were standing by their side to help because of it. And Uraraka…Bakugou didn't care if she hated him. He cared about her, and because of that, he felt like he could do anything.

…

* * *

"So…that's kinda the whole story," Kirishima explained. "There are a lot of details I missed, but it would take WAY too long to go through everything right now."

Tokoyami, Momo, Shinsou and Jiro all just stared at him. "…Would you mind just explaining…everything again?"

The laws stated that Kirishima wasn't allowed to explain everything about life outside of the planet for people on level 2 planets or lower. However given the situation, Aizawa said it may be necessary to at least give them enough information so the humans wouldn't freak out. Besides, he was only telling the few who had already seen aliens of their existence. It wasn't like the rest of the world would believe them if they told anyone. So when the rest of their new team went off to save Bakugou's human, Kirishima stayed behind to explain what was going on to the few humans who had the least amount of information.

Tokoyami, their world's police officer, rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Worlds in space…truly the wold is captivated by darkness."

Kirishima…really wasn't sure how to respond to that. "Uh, maybe. Sure."

Yaoyorozu was tapping her cheek thoughtfully. "Hmm. It seems that aliens work in many of the same ways that humans do."

Shinsou snorted. "Really? How do you figure?"

"Well it sounds like they have a military. A court. Same way to measure time and days. Structure of authority. Emotional capacity. Even the morals that gives a person a soul are the same. Despite being on completely different planets with their own history and, arguably, biology that would shape them differently, the social standards all seem to be the same." She mused over the information, carefully organizing it to avoid worrying over the fact that life outside of her planet existed. "I mean, really, they aren't that different."

"…Touché…" Shinsou muttered.

Kirishima ignored them. As he'd spoken he kept sneaking glances at Jiro to see how she was reacting. Now that he was done however, he blatantly stared right at her. Like before she refused to look at him. The only way he could tell that she was listening was thanks to how she reacted to the others words, but she would not look at Kirishima the whole time. Kirishima had tried to add bits and pieces of his own story into the mix and his associations so she would know, but she didn't react to any of it.

There was no way, at the end of all this, that Kirishima would be allowed to stay. But if this was the end…he couldn't let things end like this.

"Jiro…" She didn't react. The others all glanced at each other nervously, sensing the tension in the area that was even thicker than it was before. Carefully Kirishima took a step towards her, hoping that maybe after hearing his story she'd at least be willing to talk. "I'm sorry…"

"Sorry?" Jiro snapped. Kirishima cringed at the fire in her eyes when she glared at him venomously. "For which part? Oh, how about the part where you only got to know me in order to find information on an escaped, murderous criminal? No? Then maybe you mean the fact where you pretended to care about me and played with how I felt? You know, it was probably for the fact that you lied to me about absolutely everything, completely led me on for months and after this you were just going to leave and walk away from all this like nothing happened! Yet I would have stayed here completely confused and heartbroken without any answers! That's what you should be apologizing for!" The other, by the time she'd finished talking, had all taken a few steps back. Kirishima refused to move, it wouldn't be manly to run away when she was mad at him.

Would have been easier to talk if she didn't look so terrifying when angry thought. "I-I swear Jiro, I wanted to tell you everything! But it's illegal."

"Telling me the truth?" Jiro asked incredulously.

"No! " Kirishima waved his arms around in defiance. "Well, ah, kinda. I'm not allowed to show people from worlds under level three the existence of life forms beyond their world. And relationships with those people are a big no." Kirishima wished the truth behind those words wasn't so apparent. Aizawa may cover for him. Kirishima hadn't told him anything but he doubted he hadn't been able to figure it out. But with their fight with Endeavor, it was unlikely that he would be able to hide it if Endeavor came down to investigate. _If only there wasn't that stupid rule,_ Kirishima cursed.

Jiro was glaring at him, probably deciding whether to flay him alive or throw him into a boiling pot of water. If she cared any less about him, she wouldn't have let him speak anymore. However she did. And that made her want to hope that perhaps his intentions weren't meant to be as painful as they felt. "Then," She grunted, crossing her arms angrily. "Why was your cover dating me?"

His answer was a bit more complicated and…one he knew he couldn't risk not telling the whole truth about. "That's because…it wasn't. My cover was just being your friend. Both my partners told me not to and didn't know we were dating the whole time. I dated you because…Well, I knew it wouldn't last but…" He paused to take a deep breath. When he was calm he lifted his head so he could look her in the eyes. Jiro was startled to see an honest vulnerability in his red eyes. "I'd never liked someone as much as I liked you. And I wanted to be with you for as long as I could. Even if it was only a few months, I didn't want to live the rest of my life without it."

"..."

"Oh my gosh, now you have to forgive him!"

"Yaoyorozu, not now!" Jiro hissed. Her cheeks had enflamed to the brightest shade of red Kirishima had ever seen in them. Just the sight made him smile a little. Tokoyami seemed to nod in approval while Shinsou gave him a silent thumbs up. Unfortunately Jiro still wouldn't look directly at him, even if she did have her friend's encouragement.

Again he tried to take another step forward, effectively shutting the others out so it was only Jiro and Kirishima. She hesitantly looked into his eyes, a choice that she knew she was going to pay for. And she did, when she caught the sight of those big, bright, red eyes fill with love for her but no regret towards his actions. Maybe for lying, but he did not regret dating her. Yes, the pain was awful. But he would do the same thing over again if it meant he could stay with her for those few months.

"I didn't want to lie to you, and I'm sorry that I first got to know you in order to get to Bakugou. That is the one thing I regret. But I swear, I'm really sorry. I didn't want to leave you without telling you anything but I didn't know what to do! I really like you Jiro and I knew it wasn't allowed but I went ahead and dated you anyway. I…If I can do anything to stay on earth with you after all of this I will. I swear. As long as…As long as you are okay with me staying here as well. If I'm not staying with you, then I don't care about this planet. I just want you."

With that admittance, silence followed his words. Jiro was staring into his eyes, making sure there was no doubt in them. The others were all watching curiously, waiting to see her reaction. Kirishima was holding his breath, chest frozen as he waited for Jiro's answer. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, a small smile traced her lips.

"We'll…see how I'm feeling when we get Uraraka back," Jiro finished, turning away from him. Kirishima was about to start again, but before he could he spotted the small blush of pink on his cheeks.

"You forgiiiiive me."

"What!" She snapped, spinning around to stare at him. "No I don't!"

"Oh, thank you so much Jiro!" Kirishima beamed, bringing the rays of the sun to shame. "I swear I'll never lie to you again!"

"You- don't get cocky! I didn't say anything!"

"I really like you too!"

"Stop it!"

"Sorry to interrupt," Shinsou cut in before Jiro could explode from embarrassment and Kirishima could explode from happiness. "Kirishima, is there any chance your species of alien can see clearer into the sky?"

Kirishima blinked, clearly baffled by the change of topic. "Uh, I suppose. Why? Can't you?" Shinsou didn't answer. Instead he pointed to the sky and all the others followed his gaze. There was the big, dark cloud where their enemy's space-ship was likely hiding behind and the small red dot ship that was following it with their allies. Kirishima thought he caught sight of something green in the sky as well, but didn't pay attention. However Shinsou was pointing in the opposite direction. There Kirishima saw another small, blue dot. One that looked like it was getting closer.

"Will that be a problem?"

…

* * *

"Alright. So you're going to want to jump into the third window, that's closest to the prison area. There is likely to be a few guards, though if the cloaking device is working properly, they would all be in the head of the ship. Regardless, you need to be prepared to fight them off. We will try and cover you from the outside, but we don't want to put more people in the ship than we need to in case something goes wrong. B-but the point is that this is not supposed to be a battle. The objective is get Uraraka, then get out. If we have to fight Endeavor head on, wait for after you've managed to get Uraraka out of the ship. Oh, and of course we can't forget-"

"Deku?"

"Yes?"

"How the f! k are you able to make plans up like this?"

Midoriya blinked, as if that was the last question he expected to hear. When he realized that all the others who were standing at the cockpit with them were waiting for his answer, he immediately got flustered and started waving her arms around. "I-I do a lot of mission planning in my line of work! It's nothing weird!" He worked in human 'security' something right? Bakugou wondered if there was more to earthen military than he had learned during his stay. Aizawa narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Midoriya, but decided it wasn't the time to ask any more questions.

As they closed their ship in closer to the enemy ship, Bakugou ignored Midoriya in favour of focusing on his target. They began closing in on the third window from the front and Bakugou knelt forward on the deck. His tail was flickering in agitation, spikes tingling with anticipation and eyes darting all around in excitement. Finally, he was back in his element. Preparing to break into an enemy ship and destroy their property. Well, rescuing a person was not part of his original training, but he was sure he could adapt.

"HEEEEYYY, we've only got a thirty second window!" Present Mic called to the ground waiting by the cockpit. "If he's gonna jump in, he's gotta do it sooooon!" Bakugou wanted to leap to his death just to avoid that shouting.

"Fine," Aizawa mumbled. "Bakugou, I know this goes against your nature, but try to avoid fights if you can. If you must take them down, but they will just waste time." Bakugou snorted but didn't argue. As he prepared to jump however, Aizawa grabbed his shoulder. "Wait. One last thing?"

"What?" Bakugou hissed without looking back. If he had, he would have noticed the smirk that had grown on Aizawa's face.

"It wouldn't be a bad idea to make sure that they can't fly off while you and Uraraka are still in there." At first Bakugou was going to say, 'well duh,' but after a second of thought he stopped.

With caution that was slowly growing into excitement, Bakugou turned to look at Aizawa. "You want me to destroy?"

"As much as you can."

His smile was as dark as a gremlin making a deal with the victim. "F!#k yeah."

And Bakugou launched himself through the air.

For a second he was freefalling, the air rushing past him as he raced forward. The world around him was silent, nothing but the wing rushing against his tail and through his hair. The ship was just hanging in midair for a moment. Then, faster than even the quickest skydiver had the chance to recover from, the ship went from a far distance to right in front of him. A sane creature would have tried to dodge. Bakugou really didn't care enough to pretend he was sane.

With a blast from his arms the window was crashed to smithereens. Ignoring the rush of wind that followed him Bakugou hugged his body into a ball and crashed into the ship, the most damage going into his arms and legs. Bakugou barely grunted from the pain as he forced himself into a standing position. Around him he could hear alarms blaring and soldiers stomping through the halls. The ship was the same layout as the one he had been imprisoned on before- long circular hallways that all connected together with doors to the side that would get him into specific rooms.

Sure enough, just a short distance behind him was a door labelled 'prisoners.' _At least that stupid Deku is good for something._ Bakugou bared his fangs in a cocky grin.

"Monstrosity!" then again, maybe he was just a fool. Spinning around, Bakugou found Endeavor standing behind him, looking like he couldn't decide between being shocked at Bakugou's arrival and completely enraged that he was not in the prison where he ought to be. Well, he was trying to get there anyway. The plan hadn't involved running into Endeavor right off the bat. Bakugou shifted into a fighting position as Endeavor pulled a laser from his belt. "How come you aren't in the prison?"

"You really thought pathetic fools like your goons could hold me?" Bakugou mocked. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed that a majority of the soldiers and aliens were maintaining a distance. Bakugou wasn't sure why, until he felt another wave of wind fly through them. Ah, the window. Bakugou was designed to be able to keep his balance and stay on the ground in case of heavy winds, and Endeavor was large enough to avoid getting thrown through the air. The other aliens around them would be sent soaring the minute they lost their balance and be sent plummeting back to earth.

"You are worse than the devil himself," Endeavor hollered. Bakugou barely paid attention, too busy straining his ears to see if he could catch the sound of Uraraka's breathing, maybe banging on her cage if he was lucky. There was nothing- Bakugou wasn't sure what to make of that. But he doubted that was a good thing. _These m #() &$)(S didn't kill her to clear their tracks, did they? _The thought made Bakugou's blood boil.

"Uraraka had better be alright you f #($s!" Bakugou screamed, interrupting Endeavor yelling at him to remain silent. Endeavor looked so affronted by his interruption Bakugou prepared to dodge an attack.

His enemy took a second to speak. "Uraraka?" Bakugou snarled. He didn't want her name on HIS lips. Endeavor paused for a moment to contemplate Bakugou's words. "Are you still here for…the human?" Bakugou remained silent. Had Endeavor been in a better mood and believed he could win without much fight, he would have laughed. However the surprise attack coupled with the enemy looking prepared to set the whole place ablaze, Endeavor could only allow himself to frown in frustration. "You little- can't you get it through your head? No one could care about someone like you!"

"Don't care," Bakugou retorted. "I'm saving her whether she likes it or not."

Endeavor scoffed. "How admirable. Perhaps you can take some comfort in your last moments knowing you weren't complete trash." Whipping out his laser Endeavor fired a blast at Bakugou. The fellow alien however was prepared for the attack. His shot hit the ground only a second after Bakugou had jumped away. With a snarl Bakugou raised an arm and sent an explosion fired off in Endeavor's direction. The large alien cursed before managing to duck out of the way just before the explosion singed his face. Instead of Endeavor the blast hit a column of pipes trailing across the ceiling. Even more alarms began blaring. "You little…" before Endeavor could even finish Bakugou turned away from him and raised his arm in the opposite direction. Another large explosion was set off in the opposite direction. Whatever he hit caused the entire ship to lurch to the side, making even Bakugou lose his balance. "My ship!" Endeavor hollered. "You disgusting creature! What do you think you're doing?"

"What I do best," Bakugou grinned at his enemy. "Destroy." For what may have been the first time in a long time, Endeavor felt a twinge of fear.

Two more explosions were shot through the hallways. Aliens screamed and ran around the ship for safety. With a smirk, Bakugou fired again, the second time aiming for the second window closest to the front. The window closest to Endeavor. The general barely had time to react before the ship tilted off-balance and the air sucked him outside of the ship. Endeavor only barely managed to catch the edge of the window before he was thrown into the air. Bakugou took the opportunity to sprint towards the prison doors.

As he ran he felt a sharp pain right in-between his tail and longest spike. He howled in pain, falling to the ground with a thud. Growling he felt around, grateful there was only bits of blood. The second shot however caught him right in the shoulder, sending him down to the ground again. That one burned worse than the first. He was certainly going to feel that in the morning. Spinning around he caught sight of Endeavor trying to claw his way back up, laser still in hand. "A-abomination!" he yelled.

Bakugou just glared back. "Die stupid extra."

Swinging around, he sent another explosion in his direction. The damage caused the side of the ship to burst into pieces, causing at least one engine failure. Bakugou spun around again, not bothering to see if Endeavor had managed to make it or not. Instead he sprinted to the door, finally reaching the handle so he could yank the door off its hinges and send it flying behind him. Barging his way inside, he sprinted through the walls of caged until he could find the only one that was filled.

Relief flooded through him when he found Uraraka in a corner, still inside the same cage that they had caught her in. Her big, brown eyes widened when she saw him while Bakugou was overwhelmed with relief. A part of him had begun to wonder if he would really see her again. _Stupid- of course I was going to! I'm the greatest in the universe, you really think I can't save one stinking human?_ Ochaco was on her feet already, probably startled by all the noise. There was fear plain in her eyes, thought Bakugou hoped that it was because of the ship failing and not because of him. "Uraraka!" He banged his fists on the glass, making her jump in surprise. "Are you hurt? Which one hurt you? I'll kill them!"

If that wasn't something that Bakugou said on a daily basis, Uraraka would have freaked out. Luckily she knew him and the familiarity behind his words actually calmed her. "N-no Bakugou. I'm alright." Bakugou grunted to show he was pleased. Tension as sharp as a knife still hung in the air ready to slice them both through. Bakugou tried to ignore it as best as he could, instead opting to getting her out and dealing with the rest later. He noticed that around the corners of the glass there were scratches and small cracks. Evidence that even when imprisoned she hadn't given up on trying to escape. _That's my f #(*%g human._

"Stand back." Uraraka was confused, until she saw Bakugou raise his tail. She scrambled back as Bakugou swung his tail around and slashed through the front glass. It shattered into pieces and fell to the floor, creating a clear opening for Uraraka to get through. Already Bakugou was leering with the taste of victory when he stepped away to give Uraraka room. "Come on. We gotta hurry before this ship crashes or those f!##! s come find us." Bakugou waited for Uraraka to climb out of her cage, keeping his eyes on the doorway he'd come from. There was the sound of glass breaking under Uraraka's big boots, ones he hoped were strong enough not to be cut by glass. But after she had stood, there was no more movement. Confused, Bakugou glanced back. She had stood up just find, but she wasn't moving towards him. "What? Come on, let's get the f! k out of here."

"Where?" Bakugou blinked. He met her eyes and was shocked to see her hard gaze staring back at him. "Where are we supposed to be going?"

"Where are we going? Did you lose your brain along the way Uraraka?" It wasn't impossible. Overhaul had experimented with trying to find ways to take the minds out of creatures to create mindless drones… "For f #k's sake Uraraka, we ain't got time for this. Trust me, you don't wanna be here if I have to fight them off."

"Trust you?" Uraraka interrupted with venom. "How am I supposed to trust you? I trusted you, and it blew up in my face!" Quite literally, if they counted the house. Bakugou's eyes widened as the familiar wounds in his heart began to open up again. Did they have to do this here? Now? Bakugou wanted to just grab her and run, but the way she was looking at him shook him to his very soul. If he had a soul.

Unfortunately despite Bakugou's own hesitance, they really couldn't afford to wait. Since Bakugou was in his original form again, he could hear the many aliens thundering around trying to fix their ship. It was only a matter of time before they came rushing in to catch them. Uraraka may be strong but he doubted she could survive the crossfire of an all-out battle. F #k. They're going to be here any minute Uraraka! Can't you trust me for five minutes?"

"No, I can't!" Uraraka exclaimed, hands balled into fists. If nothing else, Bakugou took some pleasure over the fact that she was angry instead of shaking in fear at the sight of him. She hardly seemed bothered by his physical appearance anymore. "You lied to me! You lied about everything! I trusted you!"

"Why the f #k do you think I lied?" Bakugou threw back, throwing his hands in the air. "Because I knew you wouldn't trust me if I didn't! I'm an alien! I was created to destroy, nothing else!"

"What?" Uraraka stopped. Bakugou wasn't sure which part had startled her. She had to know he was an alien, right? "But…you didn't destroy everything Bakugou." She frowned at him, internally still angry at him but caught to off guard to continue.

Bakugou on the other hand stared at her, wondering if she really had lost her mind. "Yes I did. What the f #k is wrong with you?"

But Uraraka was unrelenting. Stubbornly she shook her head. "You didn't destroy everything. You made a ship all by yourself. You cooked dinner almost every day. You worked at a job where you kept bad people in line. Isn't that proof enough that you can do more than just break things?" Bakugou didn't know how to argue. He wasn't sure he was even supposed to. If he didn't he felt like he was the loser, but she was praising him so didn't that make him the loser? And what she said…wasn't it true? Why hadn't he thought about that?

"I…don't know," Bakugou answered truthfully. The sirens, alarms and screaming aliens around them all faded out. The only ones on the ship- in the world- was those two right there. Bakugou shook his head, unable to accept this new information that his heart desperately wanted. "Didn't those a !#*&(&$*(&%s tell you? I'm the f #$$*g destroyer, I was built to destroy!" He stomped on the ground, making the entire room shake. "Where do you get off telling me all this s $*%*y stuff about me? You're the one who's angry! You're the one who made it hurt here so much that I couldn't breathe!" he slammed his fist to his chest, the emotional pain becoming so real it was almost physical. Uraraka seemed startled by his admittance to feeling pain from her.

At his words, all she could do was shake her head, the anger slowly fading. Almost to a point where Bakugou wished it wouldn't. He could deal with anger, he'd had it his whole life. But emotional maturity was something he had only started working on in the last few months. He wasn't ready to work it out yet. "I'm not mad at you because of some fate or destiny other people tried to force on you," Uraraka explained. "I'm angry because you lied to me! Because I don't know who you are anymore!" Her own words caught in her throat. She turned away, and Bakugou thought he saw tears welling up in her eyes. She shook them out before turning back to glare at him. "And because you DID destroy my house!" Oh thank goodness, there was still some anger there.

"That was an accident! Blame the stupid soldiers who barged into your house!" Uraraka looked absolutely horrified.

"THERE WERE ALIEN SOLDIERS IN MY HOUSE?"

"I WAS THE FREAKING ALIEN IN YOUR HOUSE!"

If he wasn't possibly in love with her, he would have left her there out of frustration. Instead he opted to growl and swing his arm around to break the cage next to him. Even through his frustration, a few dots of hope began to spring up. She didn't care? She really, really didn't care that he was a destroyer? That he was a monster? That he wasn't human like her? Bakugou knew enough about society to know that was he was feeling wasn't appropriate for the time, but dang his heart was starting to feel a whole lot lighter.

Uraraka did not feel the same lightness in her heart. She took a step away from him, catching his attention once again. "You lied," she said, voice low and full of pain. The same pain Bakugou was going through. "You hurt me. I…I loved you and now I don't know who you are anymore. How can you…"

"I'm sorry."

She stopped. Surprised, she looked up at him. "What?"

"Don't make me say it again." Bakugou grumbled. He was looking away, hiding his sheepish face. "I didn't want to hurt you. If you just f (#)*$g come with me, I'll tell you whatever the f #k you want." He reached out one hand to her, not flinching back when she stared openly at his larger, black and orange hand along with the grenades on his arms. She stared at him, his words tempting her like the pied piper tempted children to his song. If she was honest she wanted to take his hand and trust him without question.

The logical side of her brain stopped her from doing that. "Why should I trust you'll keep your word?"

"My word? I'm the f ($*)g strongest in the universe, what's stronger than my word?" When he could see that didn't convince her, he grumbled. "Just hurry up. I'm not going to let the person I love stay here and die just because she's acting like an idiot, okay?"

Uraraka froze. In all the commotion and travesty that had occurred that day, Uraraka wondered if she'd lost her mind or if she had really heard him. "You…love me?"

Bakugou grunted, forcing his deep red eyes to meet her wide, innocent ones. She was going to be the death of him… "What, did you f ($*)(g not hear me? Course I f ($*(g do, why else would I have come onto this f *($))g hell-hole of a ship if I didn't?" Uraraka sighed.

"You're an idiot."

"What did you say?"

She just shook her head, but there was a small, bubbling smile that Bakugou loved that was growing on her face. "Couldn't you be a little nicer," she muttered. "You know, if I treated people this way when I'm saving them, I would get fired." But, without any more arguments, she took his outstretched hand.

Bakugou scoffed. "That's why you're the hero and I'm the alien criminal." Before she could start talking again Bakugou pulled her closer to him. "Wrap your arms around my neck alright? Don't let go no matter what?" Confused, Uraraka followed his orders without question.

"What are you going to do?"

"Well," Bakugou grumbled, annoyed he had to explain his whole plan. "The plan was to jump out the window I came through and back onto Aizawa's ship, but with all the time you wasted we ain't getting back there in time." Did he just say he'd jumped through a window? How did he get up there? Uraraka didn't have the chance to get these answers when Bakugou wrapped one arm around her waist and…his tail to. Uraraka tried not to think about that. "So we're gonna go with plan B."

"What's plan B?" Uraraka asked innocently.

"Destroy stuff."

Before Uraraka could ask what exactly that entailed, Bakugou had pointed his hand to the ground beneath them. The next thing Uraraka knew the bottom of the ship was blown to bits and she and Bakugou were soaring through the sky. Well, soaring may not have been the word to use. Plummeting to their deaths would have been the better word. Uraraka screamed so loud her throat started to ache. Bakugou winced and yelled something at her, but she couldn't hear it. All she could do was scream as her life flashed before her eyes.

At one point the clouds and sky flying past her was shut out. The next thing she knew Bakugou had pulled her into his chest, wrapped both arms around her and was basically holding her in a ball. If Uraraka could see their position from the outside she could see Bakugou preparing to protect her once they hit the ground. He wasn't built to survive extreme drops. But he still had a better chance of surviving than she did. What good were those chances if he couldn't keep her alive? He forced Uraraka to keep her eyes shut as they fell, but he kept his own trained on her. If he was going to hit the ground then he would die knowing that the last thing he saw was her. _If only he'd see her stupidly wonderful smile before he died…_

Before he could try and make that happen, Bakugou felt something metal slowly come up under them and catch them carefully.

He blinked. They were still falling, however not at the same speed. Confused, he looked around. Still in the air. Had they died? Had Aizawa caught them? Only then did Bakugou look down and gape. Underneath them was the large wing of what looked like a green spaceship. It had caught them in midair and was gently carrying them down so that they could land on the ground safely. Bakugou searched around the ship, more confused than he had ever been his entire life. Aizawa's ship was red. Where had this green bucket of trash come from? And it looked like a weird model too. Really old.

Either way, that stupid trash bucket had saved his life. Bakugou could do nothing but sit there as the ship slowly leveled them to the ground, dipping to the side so that they slid off easily. He starred as the ship flew away, leaving them in a large patch of grass close to what was Uraraka's house, probably looking for a safe distance to land. Where in the world had that ship…

Bakugou was so stunned it took him a moment to realize Uraraka was still curled up into him. He tried nudging her, not sure why she hadn't reacted when they were on the ship. "Hey. We're on the ground."

"Did we make it?" Her voice was trembling, and he noticed she didn't look up until she got her answer.

"Yeah. You're fine." Slowly Uraraka lifted her head so she could look around. Sure enough she was met by the sight of familiar trees and grass. She was so relieved she pushed away from Bakugou in a flurry.

"We're alive!" She laughed, face so bright and sunny that Bakugou wondered if she was going to explode! "Oh my gosh- we're alive!" Before Bakugou could say anything Uraraka grabbed his face and planted her lips on his. Bakugou's eyes widened at the feeling, completely caught off guard and didn't know what to do. He didn't get much chance before Uraraka pulled way, still completely blown away in relief. "Oh my, oh man, I thought we were dead. I was so sure we were going to die. I mean, we were falling!"

"…What was that?"

"Hmm?" Uraraka looked up to find Bakugou staring at her, looking flabbergasted. Slowly realization hit her, and her cheeks started turning the brightest shade of red. "Oh, ah…" She had been so relieved she hadn't thought about what she was doing until after it was done. "Ah…That was a kiss, I'm sorry. I-I just got excited…" She continued to try and explain herself, but Bakugou didn't hear. Instead he traced his lips with one hand, experimenting with the new feeling.

After a moments deliberation he stated, "I like it."

"Huh?"

Instead of giving Uraraka an explanation he grabbed her face and pulled it in for a kiss of his own. Uraraka's eyes widened in surprise before they slowly closed and she kissed him back happily. When she ran out of breath she pulled away, but Bakugou grabbed her again and pulled her right back. Starting to lose breath she pulled away again, clearly annoying Bakugou. "N-not so much now Bakugou, I can't breathe! We just fell out of the sky you know!" The stubborn alien could see that she wasn't relenting, but refused to relent himself. Instead he leaned forward and kissed everywhere else. Her cheek, her forehead, her neck, anywhere but her mouth. Uraraka cheeks turned pink as she tried to push him away but without as much resistance as she probably should have had.

"Uraraka!" Uraraka glanced to the side, seeing Jiro, Kirishima, Momo, Shinsou and Tokoyami rush over. Jiro was the fastest, rushing to her side. "You're okay! Thank good…" she stopped, her face turning bright red when she saw what was going on. "O-oh. Sorry."

Poor Ochaco turned a bright shade of red as well. She tried pushing Bakugou away to no avail, only to find that he was much stronger than her and wasn't done yet. Momo's cheeks turned a light shade of pink when she saw them and Shinsou and Tokoyami both turned away. Kirishima was the only one who appeared somewhat happy, laughing as he tried to put an arm around Jiro. She seemed too embarrassed to push him away. That embarrassment was nothing compared to what Uraraka was feeling at that moment. Trying to get Bakugou to stop was like trying to push a brick wall.

Soon another ship landed, a group of people rushing over. There was Midoriya and Todoroki, as well as two men Uraraka didn't recognize. One with dark hair and the other with hair shaped like a banana. The man with black hair seemed to look surprised at Bakugou at first, then slowly a smile traced his lips as if to say 'I knew it.' "Uraraka! Oh good, he got you!" Midoriya's voice was enough to get Bakugou to sober up. Immediately his face set into a growl and he turned to glare at him.

"Of course she's f ($)%g okay. I said I'd save her, didn't I?" Midoriya just nodded, too happy to argue. But when Midoriya tried to get closer to see if she was okay, Bakugou tightened his hold on her. "What about you? Where did that green piece of trash come from? It wasn't from Endeavor's guys, and it certainly wasn't the ship we came on!" Todoroki and Midoriya both shared a look, one that said they clearly didn't want to explain but knew they had to.

"Well…" Midoriya hesitated, not sure how to continue. "That was…"

"Filthy little termite!" All members jumped. Out of the forest came one general Endeavor looking quite worse for wear. His uniform was slightly marred and burned, likely from his destroyed ship. Behind him others saw the pillars of smoke, likely where his ship had fallen with the rest of his crewmates. "You little- don't think that you will get away with this!"

"General!" Aizawa rushed to the front as all the others moved around behind him. "Stand down! We can work this out." Bakugou snorted. The jerk tried to kidnap Uraraka and he thought they could work things out? Heck no, there was blood to pay.

Endeavor clearly thought so to, for he stared at Aizawa like he was losing his mind. "Eraser head, you are out of line! Justice needs to be served and if you've gone soft, then I will be the one to do it!" He pointed to the sky, towards a blue dot that had gotten closer than before. "That is emperor Nezu and judge Midnights ship. Do you think their decision is going to be any better than mine? Do you think they'll give you mercy? All of you!" He waved towards Aizawa, Mic, Kirishima and Bakugou. "All of you will pay for what you have done today! None of you will escape justice!" he continued on, not noticing Jiro part from the crowd. Jiro marched straight up to him- and kicked him in the shins.

All of them gaped as Endeavor stumbled back, both in pain and shock that a small human had just kicked him. Without the fear that the others had, Jiro glared up at him. "Shut up! You just kidnapped my best friend and you think you can go on shouting about justice? Go home you jerk! How dare you threaten the love of my life!"

The once shocked Kirishima brightened like the sun. "Are you talking about me?" Kirishima gasped.

Instantly she started blushing again. "I-I don't know, I'm still mad at you!"

"Never thought I'd see the day the great general fell," Todoroki scoffed. The voice caught Endeavor off guard, and he turned from Jiro to face him.

Then Endeavor's eyes widened. "…Shouto?"

Todoroki raised an eyebrow at him. "Hello father."


	17. To The Execution Stand

To the Execution stand

"Sooo…" Kirishima glanced around at all the stunned faces around him. "Are we just going to stand here staring, or is someone going to question what the heck we just heard?"

"Father?" Momo, surprisingly, was the first person who spoke up. "Did you just call this man- alien, sorry- your father?" Bakugou was silently mouthing 'what the f!#k' in the background. Jiro and Uraraka's mouths had dropped open while Tokoyami was shaking his head mumbling something about how the universe was a dark place full of mystery. Todoroki didn't look at any of them, eyes trained on the man he called his father. Shinsou and Midoriya were the calmest of the group, glancing from Todoroki to Endeavor in silence. Even Aizawa looked slightly stunned.

Endeavor spoke up, quietly at first. "…Where have you been Shoto?"

"Running away from you," Todoroki answered. "On the one planet I thought you wouldn't find me."

To their surprise, Endeavor scoffed. "You thought the planet you were born on would be the place I couldn't find you?"

"Well you didn't. Until now," He added with a frown. Endeavor said nothing.

Ironically the person who made the biggest reaction was the one who had known him for the shortest amount of time. "WHAT?" Present Mic yelled. "I thought you were human!" Both Todoroki's said nothing. Endeavor had paused his tirade from the shock of seeing his son. All who looked onto the scene could tell there was a story behind them, but no one was willing to ask for it.

After a pause Kirishima looked at Present Mic. "What? No, I knew he was an alien right away," Kirishima told him.

"I thought that Shinsou wasn't a human, but I wasn't sure about you," Aizawa admitted. "Never guessed you were Endeavor's son though…"

"Wait, Shinsou?" Jiro turned on Shinsou. "You aren't human either?"

The man shrugged helplessly. "No. Sorry. I came here because many people feared my abilities. I've been able to live a normal life here, instead of Catzawa."

"Catzawa? That's where I'm from,' Aizawa said. Shinso grinned. Jiro thought her head was going to explode.

"How are you an alien f #$r?" Bakugou asked. "You look like a weak human to me."

"I'm half human," Todoroki explained. "Because I am half human I do not need to change my form to appear human, so there are no defining marks that aliens can seek out. The only signs are my eyes, hair and scars. All of which can easily be explained both on earth and in space." The other humans in the area certainly felt like they needed more of an explanation than that. While most aliens were not stunned by his reveal as a non-human, the father reveal caught them off guard.

The new information changed quite a number of things. "Wait…half human?" Aizawa narrowed his eyes at the general who had become oddly quiet. "Endeavor…"

"My, my," A small voice interrupted the silence. "It seems we have a number of things to talk about."

All parties turned to find a small…large…rodent like creature standing next to yet another alien. The rodent creature looked like a bear, dog, and a mouse at the same time, with white fur and a scar over one eye. Next to him there was a women alien with long purple hair and alert red eyes. The aliens recognized them as Nezu, one of the emperors of a number of galaxies, and Midnight the judge. Behind them there was a horde of alien soldiers, all armed and prepared to battle. Instinctively Bakugou got to his feet while pushing Uraraka behind him while the other humans all tensed at the sight. Who did they have to fight now?

To their surprise, Nezu just raised one paw in surrender. "Now, now. There is no reason to start another fight." He let his arm fall, surveying the damage in the people around him. "It appears that there have been enough battles today already." There was a column of smoke coming from the direction Endeavor's ship must have come from. Both he, Uraraka and Bakugou were covered in dust, dirt and smaller pieces of debris. Her house was still gone, with nothing but blackened pieces of wood in its place. And not to mention the frightened humans who were all standing at alert, staring around just doing their best to try and cope with all the new information.

Yeah. They were all pretty tired.

The humans weren't sure they could take Nezu's word that the fighting was over. Despite that, no one saw it coming when Midoriya stepped forward and spoke to Nezu without fear. "If you have any issues with the citizens of this planet," Midoriya spoke up, shocking a number of them. "Then you'll have to discuss it with me. The rest of the human population is only considered to be a level 2 planet, which means you cannot make any decisions for the planet itself. I have higher authorization, so I am able to convene on the earth's behalf." Even Nezu, a being who was considered one of the most intelligent beings in the entire universe, widened his eyes in surprise.

"Uh…Midoriya?" Uraraka muttered, carefully untwining herself from Bakugou's arms. "What exactly are you talking about?"

The man she knew as her best friend turned just enough so she could see his sheepish smile. "Sorry Uraraka but…technically my job in the CIA is actually interspatial intelligence. I deal with any aliens or non-human relations on earth. A long time ago an alien soldier named All Might came and explained to me all about life outside of earth. Now my job is to deal with any alien threats, keep the knowledge of aliens down to a minimum to avoid the population learning too much and help peaceful aliens get assimilated on earth." Bakugou wanted to be offended by the idea that he was considered a 'peaceful alien.' He was also confused as to why he seemed to differentiate between alien and non-human. What else was there exactly? When he noticed Bakugou's confusion he misinterpreted. "Todoroki and I realized you were an alien right away. But when you didn't hurt anyone we decided…Not to say anything." Was…was he implying that Bakugou was in his debt? Oh HECK no.

Jiro had to shake her head, unable to deal with this new information. The shy, fumbling friend of Uraraka's was in charge of…aliens? "Midoriya communicates with aliens…Shinsou and Todoroki ARE aliens…How many aliens are there on this planet?"

While rubbing the back of his head sheepishly he muttered, "Well, Tsyuu's one…"

"TSYUU TOO?"

"Who do you think flew the green ship?" Todoroki asked, pointing in the direction it had gone. "That was the one she used to get to earth."

Others gaped at what Todoroki was acting should have been obvious. "Now I know why you never told me how the two of you met," Uraraka muttered.

Midoriya smiled sheepishly. But as soon as he turned back to Nezu all fear was gone, and for the first time for some of them, they could see how Midoriya could be in charge of something so important. His confidence and stern gaze made him look like a completely different person. "Regardless, All Might gave me the authority to discuss interrelations with other worlds if necessary." A few of the aliens gasped in surprise at the name. Midoriya seemed taken off guard at their reaction. "I-If you don't recognize his authority then,"

"We do," Nezu interrupted. The rarely surprised emperor was rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "I had always wondered what happened to the war hero and military general." Most others did not understand the implication behind Nezu's words. The war that All Might participated in had been one known throughout the galaxy. If earth was in touch with alien relations, they all would have recognized the alien name, even if he was from thousands of lightyears away. Nezu allowed the information to pass for a moment, turning instead to Endeavor with a frown. "And it appears our newest military leader has been hiding a number of things." Endeavor cursed under his breath. Todoroki narrowed his eyes, but remained just as silent.

Carefully, Momo took a few steps closer to Shoto. "So it is true Todoroki? You are an alien?"

Immediately Todoroki's gaze shifted. The hard gaze he was sending his father became one of anxiety and fear when he landed on Yaoyorozu. Instantly his attention shifted to her and he turned so that he could face her alone. "My father crash-landed here during his military training. He and my mother had a kid before he had to run off to avoid getting caught by the military, which could likely lead to both my mothers and my immediate termination. Midoriya and All Might, when he was still here, helped create a human identity for me and found ways to help me integrate properly, as well as hide from my father." The easily flustered of the group turned away when Todoroki reached out to take Yaoyorozu's hands in his own. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you Yaoyorozu."

After a pause she gave Todoroki a warm smile. "It's fine." Todoroki let out a sigh of relief.

In the background Bakugou muttered, "How come half-and-half gets forgiven so easily?"

"Because he wasn't dating her dummy!" Others inclined to ignore Bakugou's yell when Uraraka cuffed him upside the head.

"You had a relationship with a creature from a level 2 world," Midnight spoke to Endeavor. "And you had a son. You know that's illegal, right?" Endeavor scoffed, but couldn't argue. Out of curiosity, Midnight asked, "Why didn't you report it? If you had we could have simply erased the memory of the human and cleared this mess."

Again, Endeavor scowled indignantly. "That was never an option." Most believed he said that because it would damage his career and he would never be allowed to be a general. Shoto on the other hand new that if Endeavor had reported his crimes to get the easy sentence, he may have gotten off easy. However His mother would be left with years of her life missing and a son whom she had no idea where he came from. And Todoroki certainly would have had no idea what to do with his life.

Endeavor never claimed to be a good father. But Todoroki had to admit he at least tried to do what he could to keep both he and his mother alive. There was no guarantee they would allow Todoroki's existence to continue if the court found out about him, or his mother for that matter. If nothing else, Todoroki owed him that. So with that in mind, and the fact that he wanted to stay as far away from his father as he could, he never sought out his paternal heritage and instead stayed happily on earth. Eventually he and Midoriya met, exchanged information and often worked together in dealing with alien affairs. His father was a man who cared for few and often never showed mercy. However, he at least had the decency to keep his son and lover alive, despite the danger their existence brought him.

Shoto could thank his father for that. But not much else.

Midnight seemed curious about the situation as he observed the two men. However any chance she had for getting more answers was whisked away. "We can deal with this matter later," Nezu decided, waving the questions away. Endeavor looked like he wanted to protest, but kept his mouth shut. "For now, lord explosion murder needs to be brought in. Aizawa, you and your team did delay his capture for longer than was necessary. And it appears that one of your members also broke the law in have a relationship with a human. All of you will need to be tried-"

"Bakugou."

"I…" Nezu turned to Bakugou, perplexed. "Excuse me?"

"It's Bakugou. Katsuki Bakugou is my name." He stated with finality. "And like hell I'm gonna let you take me off this planet. I'm staying here, whether you like it or not." Endeavor immediately scowled, hand going for his laser as he prepared for another battle. Midnight and Nezu on the other hand glanced at each other with curious gazes. Staying? They thought he was going to try to conquer as many planets as possible. Yet he was suggesting staying on earth?

"Bakugou, what's" Uraraka finally managed to stand. She stared down at Bakugou, a million conflicting emotions running through her head. "…Are you leaving?" Was she happy? He'd ruined her house. Her parents' house, the one thing that meant so much to her. The thing she'd worked years to keep around. Now that person who did it, the one who she had said she hadn't wanted to see again…Was leaving.

The emotions she was feeling…shouldn't be as complicated as they were.

Emotions were never Bakugou's strong suit. He couldn't read the emotions going on in her head any more than she could. All he could sense was a layer of fear. Was she still angry at him? Did she still want him to leave, so she would never see his face again? He'd gotten her to trust him enough to get her out of the ship, but how long did that last?

Maybe Bakugou's time was really up.

 _Fine_ , he thought to himself. But he wasn't leaving it as it was. He startled the others when he jumped to his feet, and grabbed Uraraka's shoulders so she had no choice but to listen. "You wanted to know everything? Here it is. My name is lord explosion murder. I was born on the planet Bakugou and was raised on the planet Katsuki. When I was five a crazy scientist killed my parents and kidnapped me in order to genetically enhance my body to make me into a killing machine. The rest of my life he trained me to kill and conquer whole worlds at a time. But when I was older I thought he was pathetic to only want to take over one solar system so I killed him. Before I could leave the intergalactic military found me, including an alien named Aizawa. He was the first guy to show me any sense of decency in my adult life." Aizawa's eyes widened at his words. Not only did Bakugou recognize it as kindness…but he was actually acknowledging it in front of him.

"The government- these guys," he waved to Nezu, Midnight and Endeavor, "wanted me dead so I didn't kill anyone and I escaped. I crash-landed here, breaking apart that building that you rescued me from. My plan was to get intelligence on this world in order to leave it or conquer it. This was going to be the first world in a long line of many.

But while undercover, you were…so f ($*$g different." Bakugou shook his head, almost cursing out of frustration. "You were scared but spoke up. When you yelled at me you didn't attack me and when you were nice you didn't try to use me. I helped you because I wanted to, not because you made me. I don't know if that's how the real world actually works, but I liked it. And I liked your stupidly bright smile and the way you would laugh and how you could pin a guy down within five seconds. It was different. It was cool. And it showed me that I didn't have just one path to follow.

Even though I hate to admit it," Bakugou added with a grumble. "The other humans were like that. I just thought you were broken for a while, some kind of oddity. But they helped me to. Even when that short-haired one got angry she never spoke down to me or tried to attack me. It was all different and new and I really f (#&%&g like it. But if you hadn't taken me into your house, I never would have seen it.

So if I've got to leave here now then…thanks for…being the hero that helped me see there was more than all that. I don't know what the f#(k you did, or if you even did anything. But I like who I am here with you."

If Bakugou had the choice, he would have told her all this in private. If he knew he had more time and wasn't about to possibly fight for his right to live and stay on earth, he would have waited and told her alone, not when there was a crowd of people around them. But unfortunately, time was not on his side and he knew he had to speak up before he didn't have the chance again. He refused to look at the other humans however, eyes trained on Uraraka and her alone. Her eyes had widened to the size of dinner plates and her mouth had dropped open so far that a bid could have flown right in there. Bakugou, unfortunately, had no idea if this was a good sign or not. And considering how much it hurt when she rejected him, he really was hoping things wouldn't have to end that way.

"…and I've got a f ($*%g tail," he added, hoping it sounded cool. Aizawa shook his head.

Thankfully the boasting was so in character for Bakugou that Uraraka was able to calm down a little bit. She tried to soak in all that he said and carefully analyze everything before responding. She wanted to be mad. She wanted to be so, so mad at him. It was her parents' house. It was he who lied to her about everything…

But she couldn't find it in her heart to be mad anymore.

"I…I'm still kind of in shock by all this…That and the fact that this is the first time you've ever spoken that much at once." Bakugou grunted, but couldn't argue. "I…I'm really not thrilled that you lied to me for so long. But I mean…I do still really like you. If you're willing to then I'd be okay to…try all of this again. I'll miss the house but...I'd rather have you alive than an old building." Bakugou waited, but Uraraka smiled as if she was done.

He scowled. "What's that mean?"

Uraraka rolled her eyes. "It means I forgive you, dummy."

Bakugou blinked. "Oh." He stopped to process the new information. Then, a smirk traced his lips. "Cool. So we're lovers again, right?"

"Not that quickly! I-I mean," Bakugou tilted his head to the side, looking confused and annoyed at the same time. "…We can work it out," she assured him with a sigh and small smile. Bakugou grinned right back at her.

"Really?" Todoroki asked skeptically at the side. "He just admitted his body was built to destroy."

While Jiro was looking quite skeptical as well, she did shrug on Uraraka's behalf. "Technically so was Edward Scissorhands yet everyone thinks he's hot."

"What makes you think you're staying here to do that, monster?" All eyes turned back to Endeavor. He was enraged, probably feeling more empowered not that the attention was off his own scandal. And he probably wanted to keep it away from that. "You are still a dangerous criminal. For the safety of the universe you must be brought in."

Immediately Bakugou was back in defense mode. When Endeavor reached for his weapon Bakugou crouched and his arms stated heating in preparation. "Like I'll even give you the chance to try motherf-"

"Now hold on," Nezu interrupted, silencing them both. "We've all done enough fighting, haven't we? Besides, as I recall from the reports, Midnight was never able to make her final judgement as to whether Bakugou should be executed or not." All eyes turned to Midnight, some confused but most hopeful.

Was that really true? Their judges had the opportunity to overshadow the jury's votes if they deemed it necessary. But hadn't Midnight already decided. "I gave the opportunity for both Aizawa and Endeavor to present the case," Midnight explained. "Either that Bakugou could be reformed and return to regular society or executed for his danger to society."

"I believe his involvement on this planet has already proven that he is a destroyer," Endeavor cut in. "Have you seen all the damage he has caused? The destruction of a number of human developments. My ship!" It seemed that Midnight did pause to consider this. The fact that they had landed so close to Uraraka's former house probably wasn't helping.

"Has anyone died?" She asked.

"No ma'am," Aizawa stated, ignoring Endeavor's glare.

Midnight took that into account. Turning in Bakugou's direction, she silently studied the man in question. "I may not know much about Bakugou, but he certainly has shown to be different than when I first saw him." After a pause she questioned, "He…wasn't able to talk before, was he?"

"I learned," he stated.

She tilted her head. "How to speak?"

"Is it supposed to be hard?"

"…The point is that Aizawa's beliefs have been proven to be right," Midnight explained. "When we had you in our custody, the idea was that you were dangerous and your only goal was to conquer. From the footage Aizawa sent us it showed that not only can you function in a normal society without costing the lives of others, but you also used your abilities to save someone instead of kill them." Bakugou wondered what they would say when they found out he had continued breaking and stealing items from others, but decided it wasn't the time to ask. "As far as I am concerned, since he was proved right, Aizawa ought to be given the chance to decide your fate." Those who understood the situation all sighed in relief.

Well, most of them. "What?" Endeavor shouted. "But he is still dangerous! You think I'm letting this killer remain on the planet my son is?" Todoroki scowled at him, but said nothing.

"True. But as long as he stays within the control of a trusted authority, then what is the harm?" Aizawa tried not to look smug when he turned to Midnight and Nezu. "Perhaps he could be an asset to the universe instead of a villain."

"Do you suggest he be brought back with us to train as a soldier?" Nezu questioned.

"I ain't leaving this f!#($*#g planet you s ($)*( s! Not unless she comes with me!" After a pause he turned to Uraraka. "Do you want to see other planets?"

"N-not right now, no."

"I'm f ()$*)%*g staying here!"

"I meant," Aizawa continued, sounding exasperated. "Is that it is quite clear that there are a number of humans and aliens on this planet. Perhaps, with the interspatial alliance, we can figure out a way to create an intergalactic base here, in order to communicate with those aliens and a few select earthlings until the entire planet has evolved from a level 2 to 3." He glanced over at Midoriya, asking his permission silently.

"I'm sure we can work something out," Midoriya said with a smile.

At the side Bakugou grew even more confused as the wheels in his head started spinning. "Does this mean…if I stay here…is deku in charge of…"

Uraraka quickly grabbed his hand to distract him before he could come to any conclusions. "S-sh! We'll deal with it later!"

"Do you volunteer to stay here and oversee the project Aizawa?" Nezu asked to confirm.

Without a moment's hesitation Aizawa nodded. "Yes, of course. I'm sure Present Mic and Kirishima would like to stay as well."

"Er…" Present Mic tugged at his collar. "Well…"

"YES!" In a second Jiro went from standing at Momo's side to being wrapped in Kirishima's arms. "I'll stay! Jiro, I'm going to take you to mars and Neptune, then I'm gonna take you to my planet…" Jiro tuned such a bright shade of red Nezu and Midnight both began wondering if she was an alien as well. It was also clear to them that Endeavor had not been the only one to break a particular rule.

"An alien site on earth…" Endeavor scowled. "And with humans taking part? Emperor Nezu, that is extremely dangerous." Bakugou scowled at him, ready for another fight even when Uraraka tried to hold him back. Aizawa glanced at his son, wondering of Todoroki truly had his own reasons to fear Bakugou's survival. "You think the rest of the court will allow it? Will allow this creature to live on, knowing that he is not only capable of destroying planets but taking advantage of a human while he's at it. And the fact that one of the soldiers is doing the same thing…"

"Nezu and Midnight here may keep it quiet," Todoroki interrupted. "But if you don't let Bakugou and Kirishima off for this, I will make sure everyone in all of space knows about my existence. How will you continue on being the general if that happens?" Endeavor was shocked at Todoroki's interruption. He was trying to keep him safe yet HE was the one arguing with HIM? Endeavor tried to object again, but Todoroki stood forward. There were very few times Todoroki had stood up to his father. He could count the number of times on his hand. Endeavor hesitated, something many were surprised to see. He didn't want the creature to live, much less on his son's planet.

But his own son was telling him to back off. If he truly found no issue with the situation…Endeavor stepped back and kept his mouth shut. Todoroki decided he had another reason to appreciate his father.

His interruption however had brought them back to the previous argument involving Endeavor. While Endeavor was a general and could likely sneak out of the situation if Nezu and Midnight said nothing, the others did not have his rank. "You realize if it's illegal to be in a relationship with humans…" Nezu told both Kirishima and Bakugou. "You both are breaking the law." Midoriya decided not to mention that he was in a relationship with an alien as well. Best to keep that to themselves.

"Er…I'm sure it'll work out," Kirishima assured him with a sheepish smile.

"Does it really look like I care?" Bakugou scoffed. "I'm already a criminal." Nezu frowned. It was one thing letting off a general who was trying to keep his son alive, but an amateur soldier and one who was already a criminal? That would be hard to justify in his mind of few emotions and all logic.

"Perhaps we can find a way to make an exception," Nezu assured them after some thought. "The law was made so that people would not take advantage of species who did not understand the existence of aliens. But it appears these humans are able to cope with the information quite well."

"So does that mean…Bakugou's let off?" Uraraka gathered her courage to step towards Nezu. "And he's okay to stay here with me?" There was a pause as Nezu considered the situation. He had been called in to bring back and execute a potential killing machine. Now he was debating whether to create a new base on a level 2 planet, let off three aliens for having relationships with humans as well as giving said killing machine a free pass.

…Not his best day. But most certainly not his worst.

"If Midnight feels it appropriate," he concluded. "After all, she is the judge."

All eyes turned to the women in question. She paused for what could clearly be seen as dramatic effect before giving an answer that made all of them sigh in relief. "I certainly hope that you are able to handle him, human. Because he is going to be in your hands for a while."

With a grin, Bakugou reached out and wrapped one arm around Uraraka again. "Trust me, she's strong enough."

…

* * *

Nezu, Midnight, Present Mic, Aizawa, Endeavor and their soldiers all left without much fuss. Present Mic and Aizawa decided to go back temporarily to help make arrangements for the new base. Midnight certainly had a lot of work to do explaining this to the council, and Nezu would have to figure out how exactly their relationship with earth was going to work now. Endeavor and Todoroki had gone off for a moment to talk. Anyone could see it was clear that the two of them did not get along. But when they came back, Todoroki seemed much calmer than he had been when they left.

As he got on the ship, Endeavor glared at Bakugou. "Don't think this is the end. We'll be watching you, monster. If you take one step out of line, you will be sorry."

It was meant to be a threat. However all he got in the end was Bakugou smirking right back at him. "I'd like to you try, f #(%()e." Endeavor scowled at him. Before leaving, he glanced back to his son.

For a moment it looked like his gaze softened. "…Take care of yourself Shoto."

His son turned away with a scowl on his face. "Whatever." Endeavor gave no effort to continue.

Aizawa waited until Endeavor was back on the ship before turning to the others. "Midoriya, I look forward to working with you in the future. I'll try and return in a weeks' time so we can work on the details behind this new base." Midoriya nodded, practically beaming at the idea. As he turned away, he paused before going up the steps. "…And Bakugou?" The man glared up at him. Aizawa's face showed the smallest sign of a prideful smile.

"Good job."

The ship blasted off and soared through the air in a matter of moments. Shinsou and Tokoyami stared at the sky as it left, one utterly calm and finally coming to the conclusion that his life was a mess and he would just have to deal with it. Momo had moved to Shoto's side nervously hoping to support him. She had been shocked when Todoroki had wordlessly taken her hand in his. Midoriya went off almost immediately to call Tsyuu and make sure he was okay before having to make a number of calls to higher authorities. Jiro had taken the spot next to a beaming Kirishima while Bakugou had one arm wrapped around Uraraka who smiled contentedly.

As if to break the mood, Kirishima spoke up. "…So, uh…where is Bakugou and Uraraka going to live now?"

 **Yeah, Endeavor's not my favourite character…but it really does look like he's trying to change in the manga. I'll give him some credit for that. There will be one quick chapter after to just tie lose ends up.**


	18. Home

Home

*One Year Later*

"Keep them shut."

"Bakugou, its fine."

"F-keep them shut, I told you!"

"Bakugou my eyes are closed, there is a cloth over them and my hands are covering my eyes. I can't see a thing!" Uraraka had to giggle when she heard Bakugou grumbling under his breath. The poor guy had been trying to hide just how excited he was about this surprise for days. She knew she shouldn't tease him but she just couldn't help it.

She heard more shuffling as she allowed Bakugou to bring her forwards. Bakugou was cursing under his breath. After one whole human year and she still had the nerve to push his buttons?

It had been over a year since Bakugou had been cleared to stay on earth. About a month after that Aizawa had come back with a number of others. With Midoriya's authorization and the help of his agency they started building a home base on the outskirts of town where Alien interactions would be make. It was funded by both earthen government and Nezu's own empire as well. Bakugou had been given a job there, but both he and Kirishima were mostly paid in human money. Momo and Tokoyami were hired to continue with their own jobs but help cover and clear up an alien problems in the world. Uraraka and Jiro didn't leave their jobs, but they were given clearance to come and help whenever they wanted.

Also because of they weren't given that clearance, their relationships with their boyfriends would have to end. Bakugou and Kirishima had been quite ticked off at that.

Aizawa and Midoriya both were partnered in being leaders of the human/alien relations site. Todoroki and Shinsou both kept their regular human jobs as well, however they were hired to come in depending on the situation. Present Mic was in charge of human culture and being the communicator between aliens and humans. Kirishima was a soldier who went around to deal with any threats or new aliens. Bakugou was technically a soldier to…though technically, they liked to think of him as the back-up option if there was an enemy Kirishima couldn't fight.

So far Bakugou never failed a mission. And surprisingly, there were a lot of missions.

Things went well for Jiro and Kirishima after everything. She didn't trust him for a bit at first, though Midoriya and Todoroki's influence had helped. They made sure to give her clearance in the alien intelligence cite so she could learn things on her own and slowly come to trust him again. Kirishima lived at an apartment building specifically built for any alien earth residents, though last Uraraka had heard he was considering getting a place closer to her.

Endeavor had not returned to earth since the attack. Todoroki had seemed fine with that. However every few months or so, Todoroki spent a few hours on call with him. Once with his mother as well. Uraraka wasn't really sure how that was turning out. Though Momo assured her he was doing fine.

Something she was able to figure out easily thanks to their… 'Business meetings' as Momo called them. Whenever she said that though, Jiro would always wink and make kissy faces behind her back.

In Uraraka's own case, her relationship with Bakugou had…definitely gotten closer. Uraraka had agreed to give him a chance, but it had taken her, in Bakugou's very vocal opinion, a frustratingly long amount of time for her to agree to date him again. Then it had taken even longer to just explain how he worked. 'So you can control the tail?' 'Yes, of course I f#($*()%g can.' 'Like Goku?' 'What the f #k's a goku?' Midoriya had to explain a number of things to him. That just frustrated Bakugou even more when the deku explained his own biology to her. He'd had to resist the urge to punch his skull open. After Uraraka had managed to get over the whole 'my boyfriend is an alien' thing, things were relatively smooth sailing from there.

Well. When is life with Bakugou ever 'smooth' sailing? No, it wasn't easy. But as they got to know each other, it got better. They got more accustomed to it. And they were both the happier for it.

As for the house, Uraraka struggled to deal with the loss for a while, but with the help of her friends she was able to move on. The company that owned the house however was furious with the damage. They'd tried to make Uraraka pay for another house to be built and not get to live in it, while still keeping the rent that she had paid for the house. Unfortunately the day Monomo came to Jiro's apartment, the place Uraraka had been staying at until they could find her a temporary apartment of her own, Bakugou had been there. Tokoyami had to be called so Monomo wouldn't lose an arm.

"Freaking idiotic human. Once Uraraka's mine, I'll make sure she never wanted for anything ever again. That man will be begging on his feet for Uraraka to show him mercy, and when she says no, I would make sure he is boiled alive."

"Bakugou…You are allowed to think whatever you want when it comes to keeping Uraraka safe and happy…but you don't say it to him while holding him upsi-down by his ankle. And you don't start boiling the water!" It had taken Tokoyami a lot of work that day to make sure Bakugou wasn't arrested. With some help from Momo's amazing lawyer skills she was able to avoid getting Uraraka in any trouble. In exchange for half of what Uraraka paid she got to keep the land and the other half was returned to Uraraka.

Many months after that day however, Bakugou had stomped his way through Uraraka's apartment at 8 in the morning, grabbed her out of her bed and tried to drag her downstairs. Uraraka had to fight for her right to get dressed and eat while Bakugou fumed in the corner impatiently waiting for her to get ready. The next thing Uraraka knew was Bakugou tying a blindfold around her head then jumping across building roofs to some unknown destination. Uraraka was sure Midoriya had talked to him about running that fast in the city…

Finally he'd put her down in a grassy field. Uraraka was giggling, trying to be obedient and keep her eyes shut until Bakugou said it was okay. While still exhausted, she was very curious to see what Bakugou was working on. Had he finished that ship of his from so long ago? She thought he had abandoned that project. Or, perhaps they were near the alien home-base, and he'd done some work? After some walking Bakugou finally stopped, ignoring Uraraka as she crashed into his back. Momentarily he let go of her arm so he could reach up and pull away her hands and blindfold. "Alright…keep em closed Uraraka…"

"No peeking," She conceded with a smile.

There was a slight pause as Bakugou positioned her properly then… "Alright, open up."

Finally, Uraraka opened her eyes. Wider…and wider…and wider.

In front of her was a large blue house, almost an exact replica of her old one. Well, almost. It had the same blue colour and basic frame with the nice steps and from porch that she loved. However it had a much sleeker finish, with clear single-paneled windows, no loose bricks and Uraraka could barely see where the pieces of wood met on the wall. If Bakugou had a part in building it, Uraraka wondered if it was wood or metal. The building was also fitted with an extra floor that had a balcony. Uraraka guessed the inside would look quite different as well, but she was satisfied with seeing the outside. A mix of her past and present, ready for her to live out her future.

"It's uh…" Bakugou rubbed the back of his head, trying to pretend he wasn't watching her reaction as attentively as a hawk watched its prey. "It's not the exact same as your old place… but, it's cool."

"It's perfect." Without warning Uraraka wrapped her arms around Bakugou, a huge smile on her face. "Thank you so much Bakugou."

Of course the sheepish looking man tried not to show his sheepishness. "D-duh. I only make the best, what did you expect. Took long time to make it took," Bakugou muttered, trying not to make eye contact. "Kirishima was busy a ton. Kept going on about proposing to Jiro and would take up twice the time."

That startled Uraraka enough to make her pull away in surprise. "What? Kirishima's proposing to Jiro?"

Katsuki blinked. "Depends. What does proposing mean?"

Ochaco let out a long sigh before answering. The problems with having an alien boyfriend. "It means he's gonna ask her to marry him."

"…And…"

"Right right, sorry. Marriage is when a pair of people who are romantically in love with each other promise to spend the rest of their lives together. They sign some legal documents, often go to a church and have a party to show all their loved ones that they are together forever." Uraraka paused, knowing Bakugou usually preferred some time to let new information about human cultures sink in after learning about it. To herself she couldn't help but beam with happiness. She couldn't wait for that proposal. Kirishima was a pretty eccentric guy, so no doubt his proposal would be grand! Oh she hoped he would sing her a song, she loved songs….

"Why the f #k aren't we married then?"

Uraraka thought her head was going to explode. "EHHH?"

"What? Promise to spend the rest of their lives together, hell, we should have already done that! What, do humans need to have a big party to legalize it? Well fine then, let's get that done!" Flustered, Uraraka tried to calm down Bakugou as his head already started running with different plans. She protested outwardly, but inwardly she knew she would look back on that moment with fond memories.

The criminal who came to her planet was currently contemplating spending the rest of their lives together. And she couldn't be happier.

"…and besides Bakugou, you have to ask me first!"

"Fine, then will you f ()%(#g marry me?"

"EHHH?"

 **The end.**

 **Thank you for all the support!**

 **…and of course, she said yes.**


End file.
